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Date: Sat, 05 Jun 2004 18:56:09 -0400
Subject: [ASC] NEW:VOY "In Pursuit of Justice" 11/13 J [PG-13]
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Forwarded by the ASC-VSO 
Posted: 3 Jun 2004 13:35:45 -0700  
In: alt.startrek.creative 
From: roq@iname.com (Rocky) 
 

Title: In Pursuit Of Justice
Author: Rocky
Contact: roq@iname.com
Web page: http://www.angelfire.com/yt/rockyroad
Series: VOY
Part: 11/13
Codes: J
Rating: PG-13
Date first posted: 6/3/04
Archive: ASC yes, all others please ask

Summary & Disclaimer: see part 1

Noah Lessing was as quiet and soft-spoken as Janeway remembered. Not
that she had had much contact with him over the years--even on a ship
the size of Voyager it was possible, especially for the 'lower decks'
personnel to avoid much contact with senior offices. Even during the
occasional meeting in the turbolifts or Mess Hall, she did not recall
ever exchanging more than a perfunctory word or two. Lessing, like the
other former members of the Equinox crew, had kept his head down and
his mouth shut, doing the work that was required of him, but never
volunteering for more. It was as if he had wanted nothing more than to
be invisible, and had very nearly succeeded in that ambition.

"A rebuttal witness," Gaines had said, when they had heard Mendez
would be calling Lessing to the stand. "I should have expected this,
after Mendez declined to cross-examine Lieutenant Kim." He gave a
wintry smile. "We did a good job of exposing your 'vendetta' against
Ransom for the flimsy bit of fiction it was. So she's going back to
the foundation of the case, what *cannot* be disputed: your actions
against Lessing himself."

Janeway watched as Lessing, clad in the bright orange jumpsuit of a
convicted felon, spoke about the events that day in the cargo bay. The
conversation played itself out word for word; Lessing neither
embellished nor omitted any of the details.

"Your witness," Mendez said, bowing her head graciously.

"Thank you." Gaines approached the witness stand.

"Mister Lessing," Gaines said. "What was the outcome of the recently
concluded trial in which you and the other members of the 'Equinox
Five' were listed as defendants?"

"We were convicted," Lessing said. A muscle in his jaw jumped.

"Of multiple counts of crimes genocide, the Crimes Against Sentient
Life Forms Act?"

"Yes."

"Referring specifically to your actions regarding the nucleogenic
beings, the 'Spirits of Good Fortune', in the Delta Quadrant?"

"Yes," Lessing said. "For what we did to them."

"Those actions were at Captain Ransom's behest," Mendez interjected
quickly. "Let the record show--"

"We've already established that the 'Equinox Five' were following
orders," Gaines said, raising his voice. "But following the Nuremberg
Precedent, you were convicted anyway, weren't you?"

Lessing looked down at his hands in his lap. "Yes, we were."

"What sentences were handed down?" Gaines asked, in a conversational
tone.

"I received ten years at the penal colony on Omana Four."

"That's a medium security facility, isn't it?" At Lessing's nod,
Gaines went on, "what about your fellow crew members? What sort of
sentences did Angelo Tessoni, Brian Sofin, James Morrow and Marla
Gilmore receive?"

"They all got 25 years to life."

Gaines looked surprised. "Why the difference?"

"Objection," Mendez said. "I fail to see the relevance of this line of
questioning."

"The charges against Mister Lessing and the others were identical,"
Gaines said, "and yet the outcomes were not."

"Again, this is hardly relevant," Mendez said, before U'Tzedek could
reply. "Regardless, it is hardly up to Mister Lessing to determine
sentencing, or what was going through the minds of the judges."

"I suspect Mister Lessing knows exactly why his sentence was reduced,"
Gaines said.

U'Tzedek looked from one attorney to the other. "I suspect I know
where you're going with this, Captain Gaines, but be very sure that it
*is* relevant, and that your reasoning is based on solid facts as
opposed to speculation."

Mendez's eyes flashed angrily, but she sat down without another word.

"Mister Lessing," Gaines said. "Why the difference? Was there anything
that, say, Tessoni or Morrow did in regards to the aliens that you did
not? Or some aspect of sabotage on Voyager that Gilmore committed that
you did not? You *were* on board Equinox with them all to the bitter
end, weren't you?"

"No," Lessing said. "I was captured by the Voyager away team on the
surface of the planetoid, during the battle."

"Which led to the events in the cargo bay for which we are here
today!" Mendez said impatiently. "Admiral, this has gone on long
enough--"

"Yes, the events in the cargo bay," Gaines interrupted. "During which
time Captain Janeway interrogated you."

"When she tried to kill me!" Lessing said. 

"When she interrogated you for information on Captain Ransom's
whereabouts and plans," Gaines said calmly.

"She tried to kill me," Lessing said again.

"Yes, so you stated in your official complaint," Gaines said. "Which
was filed, coincidentally enough, shortly before the penalty phase of
your own trial." Gaines leaned forward, his hands on the witness
stand. "Tell me, Mister Lessing, why did you wait so long to press
charges of attempted murder against Captain Janeway?"

Lessing gave him an incredulous look. "You mean I should have done it
while we were still on board Voyager, back in the Alpha Quadrant?"

"I can understand the situation would be somewhat awkward," Gaines
said.

"Not to mention the question of whether Mister Lessing could hope for
any justice or any action whatsoever, with Captain Janeway in
command," said Mendez.

"Captain Mendez," U'Tzedek said warningly.

"I apologize, Admiral," Mendez said, not looking at all penitent.

"As a point of clarification," said Gaines, "Voyager was back for
several months before you filed your complaint. The timing makes me
wonder."

Mendez rose. "May I remind the members of the jury that the records
clearly state that a Board of Inquiry was sifting through all of
Voyager's records, including the official logs, for the first several
months after the ship's return. Any evidence of wrongdoing on the part
of Captain Janeway--or any of the other officers for that
matter--would be bound to come to light eventually. As it is, several
of Captain Janeway's command decisions--particularly those concerning
possible Prime Directive violations--received a great deal of
scrutiny."

"But none of them resulted in an article 32 hearing, let alone a
court-martial," Gaines said. "In fact, most of the rulings clearing
Captain Janeway in those matters came early on in the inquiry
phase--specifically within the first six weeks after Voyager's return.
And those were for much more complex issues than a charge of attempted
murder."

U'Tzedek nodded. "Yes, the circumstances do appear curious. Mister
Lessing, were you offered a deal in exchange for your cooperation in
this matter?"

Mendez interrupted. "Admiral, even if true, I must again renew my
protest that this is irrelevant. In an ordinary murder trial, the
authorities manage to prosecute a defendant without testimony from the
victim."

"But this is *attempted* murder," Gaines said. "If Starfleet had
chosen to prosecute without Mister Lessing's cooperation, they would
have found themselves with a much weaker case."

"But a case nonetheless," Mendez said. 

U'Tzedek said, "Mister Lessing?"

Lessing said slowly, "I wasn't on board Equinox during the later
battles; my attorney told me I had a good chance at getting some of
the charges reduced, specifically the ones involving the attacks on a
fellow Starfleet vessel."

"Were you offered a deal?" Gaines said with a hint of impatience.

"Not in so many words, but I got the impression if I testified against
Captain Janeway, it would go better for me." Lessing then added, "Not
that I needed much urging."

Gaines looked at him for a long moment. "So you were eager and willing
to take the stand?"

"You bet I was," Lessing said. "She tried to murder me!"

"So you keep saying, Mister Lessing. But are you sure?"

Lessing looked at him as if he were crazy. "She sure as hell looked
serious when she said she was going to let me die if I didn't talk."

"Let you die? How?"

"By exposing me to the creatures."

"Yes, the creatures you were using for fuel, at Ransom's behest,"
Gaines said. "Captain Janeway gave you a choice to help her, to once
and for all reject the Equinox's actions, Mister Lessing, but you
didn't take it."

"I wasn't going to betray Captain Ransom," Lessing said.

"Why not?" Gaines asked. "Why did Ransom deserve your loyalty? You
knew full well what he was doing to the aliens, and further more, you
knew it was wrong!"

"I had no choice but to go along with Captain Ransom and Commander
Burke," Lessing protested. "It bothered me, but I had to follow
orders!"

"Yes, that's why you helped kill the aliens, but why didn't you tell
Captain Janeway where Ransom was so she could apprehend him? Why did
you help sabotage Voyager instead of telling Janeway what was going on
so she could stop it, especially if it 'bothered' you what you were
doing? You *did* have a choice, you could have stopped, but you didn't
take it!"

"Objection," Mendez said. "Mister Lessing is not the one on trial
here."

"Sustained," U'Tzedek said. "Captain Gaines, be careful."

Gaines resumed. "By your actions, Mister Lessing, you showed you were
still firmly on Ransom's side. Captain Janeway had no way of knowing
that you were one of the 'good guys';  by refusing to talk, you showed
her you were just like Ransom!"

Lessing shook his head.

"You were," Gaines said softly. "You were just as guilty as Ransom.
And in your heart, you knew that one day you would have to pay for
what you did. So when Captain Janeway threatened to expose you to the
aliens, deep down, you knew it was just. Maybe you were even relieved,
because this way it would finally stop--"

"No! I never wanted to kill anyone, I didn't. I was afraid--"

"Afraid of the aliens, or afraid what Ransom would do to you if he
discovered you'd betrayed him?"

Lessing's face was shining with sweat. "If Rudy--or Max--ever knew--"

"They'd have killed you, wouldn't they?" pressed Gaines. "Just like
they did to one or two of the others on Equinox who'd protested
against the genocide, right? Just like they disabled the ethical
subroutines on your EMH, so no one would stand in their way... You
knew what they were capable of, and you were more afraid of them than
you were of Captain Janeway."

Lessing nodded. "Voyager--Voyager wasn't a hard luck case like
Equinox. They'd never been through the things we had, the Kraatorian
Guard or--" he gulped. "Their ship was whole, they had food,
supplies...Janeway wasn't driven to the edge like Rudy. She was soft,
all of them were soft..." Lessing buried his head in his arms.

"So you really didn't think she was going to kill you, did you?" asked
Gaines gently.

Lessing raised his face, streaked with tears. "No. I swear, I didn't
think she'd have the guts to do it."

As soon as Gaines sat down, Janeway leaned over and spoke in an urgent
whisper. "Call for a recess."

"Why?" Gaines said in surprise. "We've got momentum on our side now—"

"There's something you and I need to discuss."

"Can't it wait?"

"No," Janeway said. "It can't. I've waited long enough."

End part 11

--
Forwarded to ASCL by:
Stephen Ratliff
ASC Stories Only Forwarding

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