Athena Mission 3.1 Camp Kill

[James Carter]

[JAG Courtroom]

The trial was soon to begin. James sat quietly in the middle of the room waiting for his career to come to a crashing halt. He assumed at minimum he was about to be struck down to a civilian, and the worst case scenario he was going to be thrown into prison. When he was joining Starfleet, he didn't expect to have the career he did. What he expected was to ride out for a few years as the low man and maybe, in his 40's take command of a ship. Instead what he got was a career that landed him in command at a young age only to burn down in months.

The courtroom was large with a set of seats outside of a smaller open space. A small crowd had formed made up of both his peers and his crew. Soft ambient discussion could be heard from all around him. He looked behind him to the set of chairs that was he was segregated from before turning back to the front of the room to wait on his judgement. The captain rested his arms on the wooden table in front of him and closed his eyes for a moment. He reflected on his entire career and tried to formulate an argument to hopefully ease his sentencing up slightly.

[Susan Venator]

USS Athena - Bridge

Suzie was again seated in the middle chair. As she was one of only a handful of the ships company who had disagreed with breaking the Prime Directive, the case against her had been dismissed. That did not mean she was not being watched. The Athena was docked at the station where the JAG hearings were taking place but a small crew had to remain on board.

Therefore she had been ordered to supervise the ship while it was in dock and make sure all the repairs and other needs were taken care of.

She was the only one on the Bridge, so she was reading a novel and keeping an eye on the Master Display at the same time. She hoped that most of the crew would at least keep their careers, she had understood why they had done it. Just not why they had abandoned one of the core Starfleet policies.

Shrugging her shoulders, she took a sip of tea from the cup next to her and carried on with her novel.

[Katheryn Brighton]

[JAG Courtroom]

Katheryn was sat amongst the crowd that had gathered to observe what was about to happen and for the Security Chief ignored the chatter and conversations going on around her as she focused firmly on the Captain who had been segregated from his peers and his crew. Even though in the end she didn't have direct involvement in helping to save the Vindii she had fully supported the idea and the Captain for doing so and wasn't about to stop that support not when he faced the possibility of losing his rank or worse.

Besides it hadn't been difficult in making a choice to be here in the courtroom not only for James but also for anyone else who would be called and sentenced from the crew. She was proud to be from the Athena and you never gave up on family no what matter what. So she sat and waited for the outcome with her husband by her side after spending some alone time together to recharge in their guest quarters on the station. Knowing that she was stronger for it as she always was whenever they got to talk things over and see each others rationality in their beliefs and views and the decision they had made to find out the twin's gender once this was over.

[Ozu Saya]

[JAG Courtroom]

Saya sat stiffly in the second row of Athena crew members on trial. It felt like her dress uniform was strangling her, but she kept her hands twisted in her lap so as not to tug at the high collar. It would likely be the last time she had to wear it, but Saya didn't regret helping to save Vindii Prime. She was proud of the work she'd done, despite the probable consequences. She felt her father would have supported her decision. Saya wondered if her mother's family had heard that she was on trial, but none were present that she could see.

She glanced subtly at her fellow crew members to either side, wondering what they were thinking and whether any of them would be returning to Athena.

[JAG Courtroom - Saya's grandparents]

They had heard about the trial. Volnak and T'Sara had arrived on Earth in time to attend the trial, but hadn't had an opportunity to contact Saya or inform her of their presence. They were at the back of the assembled crowd and knew she wouldn't be able to see them.

They weren't even certain she would want to see them. She'd only sent a message when her parents had been killed, then come directly to Earth to join Star Fleet. They hoped she would welcome their support and be open to developing more of a relationship.

[Ruth Sigurdsdottir]

[JAG Courtroom]

Ruth looked around, then back at the handkerchief she was turning over and over in her hand.  She could see Katheryn and James but she didn't dare speak.

It wasn't the first time that Ruth had been, to quote her late Mother 'hauled over the coals', the first being way back early in her Starfleet career when she'd been on a ship which had been commandeered, or er... stolen by an Admiral wanting to go and find his long lost family.  She had been let off lightly then to a certain degree, just given some extra duty hours, they couldn't really bust her down a rank as she'd only been a cadet to start with.

She was worried however, that since this was the Prime Directive, something that Starfleet held to like it was the Holy Grail, she was not likely to be let off quite so lightly.

After losing her parents and elder brother, then Will Waring's rejection of her this was the last straw.  A single tear ran down her face unchecked and she hoped no one saw it. 

'Well this will be the 3rd 'bad' thing to happen and they come in threes they say.' she thought morosely to herself.

It was only the 2nd time in her life she had worn dress uniform unless you counted the fitting.  The other time being for a much more joyous occasion, a wedding.  The occasion of the 'coal hauling' had been dealt with on a ship level rather than in a JAG Courtroom.

[JAG Courtroom]

Saya sat stiffly in the second row of Athena crew members on trial. It felt like her dress uniform was strangling her, but she kept her hands twisted in her lap so as not to tug at the high collar. It would likely be the last time she had to wear it, but Saya didn't regret helping to save Vindii Prime. She was proud of the work she'd done, despite the probable consequences. She felt her father would have supported her decision. Saya wondered if her mother's family had heard that she was on trial, but none were present that she could see.

She glanced subtly at her fellow crew members to either side, wondering what they were thinking and whether any of them would be returning to Athena.

Looking behind her while cricking her neck, (the waiting was unbearable), she spotted Ozo Saya and gave her a small, hopefully encouraging smile. If at all possible she would get the lass off after all it was at her request that Saya had been dragged into all this in the first place.

[Caleb Brighton]

[JAG Courtroom]

Katheryn was sat amongst the crowd that had gathered to observe what was about to happen and for the Security Chief ignored the chatter and conversations going on around her as she focused firmly on the Captain who had been segregated from his peers and his crew. Even though in the end she didn't have direct involvement in helping to save the Vindii she had fully supported the idea and the Captain for doing so and wasn't about to stop that support not when he faced the possibility of losing his rank or worse.

Besides it hadn't been difficult in making a choice to be here in the courtroom not only for James but also for anyone else who would be called and sentenced from the crew. She was proud to be from the Athena and you never gave up on family no what matter what. So she sat and waited for the outcome with her husband by her side after spending some alone time together to recharge in their guest quarters on the station. Knowing that she was stronger for it as she always was whenever they got to talk things over and see each others rationality in their beliefs and views and the decision they had made to find out the twin's gender once this was over.

[ JAG Courtroom ]

Caleb sat next to his wife and they held hands as they sat. He was shaking a bit and it took a while for Katheryn to calm him down the night previous. Though they enjoyed their time off, however brief, he looked down at his colleagues. He knew he had his wife worried when he hadn't spoken a word since he mentioned he was deep in thought and not to worry. They spoke volumes just in looks alone. He thanked his stars that he was not included on the trial.

He looked down at James and Ruth and could feel the weight of their emotions. He too once felt the weight of the judging eye of Star Fleet. It was only with multiple eyewitness accounts and help from many members of the clinic that he was allowed to be back in. Whatever happened, he knew he had his wife to back him. The crew was family and he needed to be there for them.

[Katheryn Brighton]

[ JAG Courtroom ]

Caleb sat next to his wife and they held hands as they sat. He was shaking a bit and it took a while for Katheryn to calm him down the night previous. Though they enjoyed their time off, however brief, he looked down at his colleagues. He knew he had his wife worried when he hadn't spoken a word since he mentioned he was deep in thought and not to worry. They spoke volumes just in looks alone. He thanked his stars that he was not included on the trial.

He looked down at James and Ruth and could feel the weight of their emotions. He too once felt the weight of the judging eye of Star Fleet. It was only with multiple eyewitness accounts and help from many members of the clinic that he was allowed to be back in. Whatever happened, he knew he had his wife to back him. The crew was family and he needed to be there for them.

[JAG Courtroom]

Katheryn noticed Cal look in the direction of James and the others spotting Saya and Ruth amongst them and could only imagine how they must be thinking and feeling at that moment. She also knew how worried her husband had been the previous and how she had to calm him down. He had remained pretty much silent since then and of course if he was worried then she worried about him as she always did. Knowing that they just had to look at one another to know what they were thinking without having to speak a word.

Having to keep her emotions in check as she squeezed her husband's hand glad for the brief warm contact between them as they waited and at the same time hoped that everyone would be returning to their rightfl home.

[Naira]

[JAG Courtroom]

Naira chose to seat herself at the very back of the room, in the far corner. Though all eyes in the room seemed to be primarily focused on the captain, she couldn't help but notice as others shifted in their seats, gossiped amongst themselves and occasionally glared at her for a quick moment. She did not fault the crew of the Athena for their fierce loyalty to their captain, nor did she blame them for still seeing her as an outsider whose damning testimony weighed heavily on his outcome. She had done her duty to the best of her ability and for that she held no doubts.

While the others clung to their various nervous habits, Naira buried her face in a PADD she was reading as she waited for the final verdict to be read. She was not one to waste time idly sitting around when there was work to be done. Ideally, she would have preferred to return to the Athena and gotten back to work properly, but in regards to this matter, she felt it might be better to stay.

If, the captain was removed from his position, she would want to be there to direct the crew until such time that a new captain could be named. But that wasn't something she was going to worry about right now. Right now she wanted to focus on the present and get her work done.

She just hoped that one way or another, this trial would wrap up soon.

[Jules Bash]

[JAG Courtroom]

Ruth looked around, then back at the handkerchief she was turning over and over in her hand.  She could see Katheryn and James but she didn't dare speak.

A single tear ran down her face unchecked and she hoped no one saw it. 

Looking behind her while cricking her neck, (the waiting was unbearable), she spotted Ozo Saya and gave her a small, hopefully encouraging smile. If at all possible she would get the lass off after all it was at her request that Saya had been dragged into all this in the first place.

Jules pulled at the collar of his dress uniform. The thing itched. Terribly scratchy fabric, who came up with the idea? Jules forced himself to put his hand down. He was distracted momentarily by Ruth's hands continually winding around a handkerchief. He sighed deeply, realizing Ruth was stressing out, especially as she began looking around. Jules leaned up against her, grabbing both of her hands in his.

Jules scanned out in front of him, hoping for some sign as to when things would be starting up again.

"Ruth, you'll be fine. Unless I have to wear this thing for another 3 hours, in which case, you'll have to stop me from stripping down in front of everyone."

[Ruth Sigurdsdottir]

Jules pulled at the collar of his dress uniform. The thing itched. Terribly scratchy fabric, who came up with the idea? Jules forced himself to put his hand down. He was distracted momentarily by Ruth's hands continually winding around a handkerchief. He sighed deeply, realizing Ruth was stressing out, especially as she began looking around. Jules leaned up against her, grabbing both of her hands in his.

Jules scanned out in front of him, hoping for some sign as to when things would be starting up again.

"Ruth, you'll be fine. Unless I have to wear this thing for another 3 hours, in which case, you'll have to stop me from stripping down in front of everyone."

[JAG Courtroom]

Ruth had stopped her worrying of the handkerchief when Jules took her hands, then had to stop herself giggling at the thought of him stripping in the middle of a court hearing.

"Thanks, Jules." she whispered "I needed that image in my brain, ...NOT!!" she smiled at him.  "But thanks, once again you've got me thinking straight and you're right, I think whomever designed these must have been descended from they who designed the original monks hair shirts! Or possibly the torture chambers of medieval dungeons?! Who knows."

She slid one hand out of Jules's to stuff the handkerchief into her pocket.

"Jules?" she said hesitantly.  "If no one is looking do you mind keeping hold of that?!" she said giving his hand a squeeze with the one she'd kept there.  "And I dunno if you do cuddles, but I could probably use one after this, let's just say after loosing my parents, big brother and almost fiance inside 8 months this is the last thing that I needed."

[Ozu Saya]

Looking behind her while cricking her neck, (the waiting was unbearable), she spotted Ozo Saya and gave her a small, hopefully encouraging smile. If at all possible she would get the lass off after all it was at her request that Saya had been dragged into all this in the first place.

[JAG Courtroom]

Saya caught Ruth's smile and gave a small nod in return. She focused on Ruth and Jules, catching their whispered conversation.

[JAG Courtroom]

Ruth had stopped her worrying of the handkerchief when Jules took her hands, then had to stop herself giggling at the thought of him stripping in the middle of a court hearing.

"Thanks, Jules." she whispered "I needed that image in my brain, ...NOT!!" she smiled at him.  "But thanks, once again you've got me thinking straight and you're right, I think whomever designed these must have been descended from they who designed the original monks hair shirts! Or possibly the torture chambers of medieval dungeons?! Who knows."

She slid one hand out of Jules's to stuff the handkerchief into her pocket.

"Jules?" she said hesitantly.  "If no one is looking do you mind keeping hold of that?!" she said giving his hand a squeeze with the one she'd kept there.  "And I dunno if you do cuddles, but I could probably use one after this, let's just say after loosing my parents, big brother and almost fiance inside 8 months lis is the last thing that I needed."

She shook her head at their joking and teasing, but realized it must be their way of coping with the stress. Saya couldn't see any way that they'd all come through this without being dismissed from the service and couldn't bring herself to think of anything beyond that. Her attention had almost drifted away from the two and back to the matter at hand when Ruth commented on her lost family. Saya immediately felt a kinship with the other woman and started trying to figure out a way to broach the subject once this mess was over.

[James Carter]

[JAG Courtroom]

Quote footsteps could be heard approaching the bench. As James looked forward he saw the judge of his trial take his seat. Carter quickly came to a stand and looked back to his crew for a second before he looked back to the judge. "Captain Carter. You face some serious charges, as I'm sure you're well aware." The older man said in a monotone, uncaring tone. "You, and your crew, stand accused of breaking the prime directive. How do you plead?"

"Guilty. My logs should reflect that. I singlehandedly made the decision to save the multiple species on Vindii Prime. And I'd do it again." Carter's tone matched the judges perfectly. "We did the mission we were sent there to do, we removed The Last Directive from the planet, and we lowered the radiation levels on the surface while not directly interacting with the natives."

The judge was silent a moment as he thought carefully on Carter's words. "It doesn't matter how you frame it Captain, you still broke the one rule no officer should ever break." Before the judge could finish James was speaking again.

"Perhaps. About a year ago I stood alone on top of a giant rock filled with explosives hurtling towards the Earth. The only way the explosives could be triggered was for someone to stay behind and trigger it themselves, something I volunteered to do without hesitation. Just a couple months after I had return from the dead The Athena stood alone against a Borg Tactical Cube headed for Federation space. I evacuated my crew and in a last ditch effort used my ship as a missile to prevent it from entering our space and killing an unknowable number of people. You know why? Because I will never stand by and watch as people die. That's not really my thing. If you wanted a lapdog you should've sent someone else." James stated matter-of-factly.

Again,the judge mulled on the Captain's words to formulate a reply. "Good deads do not erase bad ones Captain. You still broke our rules."

James nodded for a moment before he spoke again. "I did. But you bloody need us out there. Because where everyone else would fail, my crew and I succeed. It's undisputable that we save lives. Let us do our jobs mate."

The judge looked to a younger woman who was sitting close by who shrugged as a response. "I suppose I can't argue against that." The JAG officer sighed slightly looking down at the table and then back to James. "Very well Captain. You and your crew will all receive formal reprimands, but we will send you off on your next mission. However, be aware that one more slip up like this and I will personally sign away all of your careers. Am I understood?"

James stood shocked for a moment. He didn't actually expect his pitch to work, especially not that well. He turned back to the crew that sat behind him and offered a confused but relived look. Turning back to his judge he nodded. "Understood. Are we free to go?" He asked, as diplomatic as he could.

"Go, stop wasting my time." The judge snarled in response.

[Katheryn Brighton]

[JAG Courtroom]

Her hand squeezed her husband's a little tighter than normal as the Judge entered, her nerves more evident now than before as she waited for the outcome, knowing in her heart that she would always support the Captain and do as he asked without any hesitation. Her heart threatening to bounce out of her chest as the Judge spoke followed by James giving his defence and for a briefest of moments actually held her breath until the verdict was given and sighed with relief and happiness that the punishment wasn't severe as she first thought and understood the warning.

Her and Caleb had discussed what they would do when the time came to leave Starfleet but that was a long way off and now they could all return to the Athena as a whole without leaving anyone behind. Turning to Cal she smiled brightly " Lets go see the Captain if we can and ask him that special request then we'll have Wendy do that ultrasound when we get back".

[Ozu Saya]

[JAG Courtroom]

Saya slumped back in stunned silence. She couldn't believe they were all getting off with nothing more than a reprimand. It might make promotions a little slow in coming, and other captains might be reluctant to take them on, but on the whole it was a very minor punishment for the crime.

She also was surprised that the captain had been willing to take the entire blame. They'd all acted upon their own consciences, some perhaps more than others.

Saya shook her head and rose, quietly slipping to the back of the room and out. Now that it was over, she just wanted to go somewhere peaceful and meditate. She was on the verge of tapping her combadge to contact the ship and request a transport to the Grand Canyon when she noticed a Vulcan couple standing a few meters away, staring at her. She blinked in shock and dropped her hand.

'Saya,' T'Sara whispered as their granddaughter stared at them. She held out her hand.
'Grandmother, Grandfather,' Saya responded in a guarded voice. She walked slowly toward the couple. T'Sara dropped her hand as she approached. 'What are you doing here?' Saya stopped in front of them, offering the Vulcan salute with her right hand. 'Live long and prosper.'

Volnak and T'Sara returned the greeting silently, then Volnak answered her question. 'We heard of the trial and wished to show you our support. It has been such a long time. We had hoped you might come to us after your parents died, then before you took your posting.' It wasn't there, but Saya thought she heard a little bit of condemnation in his voice.

Saya looked down in shame. She knew she should have done more when her parents were killed but hadn't felt she could face them after how they'd initially treated her mother for marrying a Bajoran. The one visit they'd taken when she was ten hadn't gone well. Now, she realized that hadn't been their fault; but in a ten-year-old's mind, they were the central cause for the problems she'd encountered. She also wasn't sure whether they would accept her on her own merit with her less-than-perfect Vulcan-ness.

'You have my gratitude for coming. I...was not certain what I was going to do if I were kicked out of Star Fleet. But, I did consider coming to Vulcan in that case.'

T'Sara folded her hands in front of her. 'Perhaps we could go for a meal and talk? There is a great deal to catch up on.'

'Yes,' Saya answered. 'That would be acceptable.' She led the way to a popular Italian restaurant, knowing they would be able to order vegetarian dishes there.

[Jules Bash]

[JAG Courtroom]

Ruth had stopped her worrying of the handkerchief when Jules took her hands, then had to stop herself giggling at the thought of him stripping in the middle of a court hearing.

"Thanks, Jules." she whispered "I needed that image in my brain, ...NOT!!" she smiled at him.  "But thanks, once again you've got me thinking straight and you're right, I think whomever designed these must have been descended from they who designed the original monks hair shirts! Or possibly the torture chambers of medieval dungeons?! Who knows."

She slid one hand out of Jules's to stuff the handkerchief into her pocket.

"Jules?" she said hesitantly.  "If no one is looking do you mind keeping hold of that?!" she said giving his hand a squeeze with the one she'd kept there.  "And I dunno if you do cuddles, but I could probably use one after this, let's just say after loosing my parents, big brother and almost fiance inside 8 months this is the last thing that I needed."

[JAG Courtroom]

Quote footsteps could be heard approaching the bench. As James looked forward he saw the judge of his trial take his seat. Carter quickly came to a stand and looked back to his crew for a second before he looked back to the judge. "Captain Carter. You face some serious charges, as I'm sure you're well aware." The older man said in a monotone, uncaring tone. "You, and your crew, stand accused of breaking the prime directive. How do you plead?"

"Guilty. My logs should reflect that. I singlehandedly made the decision to save the multiple species on Vindii Prime. And I'd do it again." Carter's tone matched the judges perfectly. "We did the mission we were sent there to do, we removed The Last Directive from the planet, and we lowered the radiation levels on the surface while not directly interacting with the natives."

The judge was silent a moment as he thought carefully on Carter's words. "It doesn't matter how you frame it Captain, you still broke the one rule no officer should ever break." Before the judge could finish James was speaking again.

"Perhaps. About a year ago I stood alone on top of a giant rock filled with explosives hurtling towards the Earth. The only way the explosives could be triggered was for someone to stay behind and trigger it themselves, something I volunteered to do without hesitation. Just a couple months after I had return from the dead The Athena stood alone against a Borg Tactical Cube headed for Federation space. I evacuated my crew and in a last ditch effort used my ship as a missile to prevent it from entering our space and killing an unknowable number of people. You know why? Because I will never stand by and watch as people die. That's not really my thing. If you wanted a lapdog you should've sent someone else." James stated matter-of-factly.

Again,the judge mulled on the Captain's words to formulate a reply. "Good deads do not erase bad ones Captain. You still broke our rules."

James nodded for a moment before he spoke again. "I did. But you bloody need us out there. Because where everyone else would fail, my crew and I succeed. It's undisputable that we save lives. Let us do our jobs mate."

The judge looked to a younger woman who was sitting close by who shrugged as a response. "I suppose I can't argue against that." The JAG officer sighed slightly looking down at the table and then back to James. "Very well Captain. You and your crew will all receive formal reprimands, but we will send you off on your next mission. However, be aware that one more slip up like this and I will personally sign away all of your careers. Am I understood?"

James stood shocked for a moment. He didn't actually expect his pitch to work, especially not that well. He turned back to the crew that sat behind him and offered a confused but relived look. Turning back to his judge he nodded. "Understood. Are we free to go?" He asked, as diplomatic as he could.

"Go, stop wasting my time." The judge snarled in response.

Jules's antennae swung from left to right, back to left. He blinked twice, and found both eyebrows jumped about a good inch up his forehead. He leaned over next to Ruth. "I told you so? I guess?" To be honest, Jules hadn't expected something quite like that. Essentially a slap to the face, and told to go do their job.

Jules figured that Ruth would probably be overwhelmed. He wrapped an arm around her, waiting for the emotion to overcome her. Jules honestly wasn't sure how he felt about it. Made one rank, and one formal reprimand in what, 3 months? Great job Jules. Great job.