"In the matter of United Earth vs. Lieutenant Malcolm Reed and Captain Jonathan Archer, Case number 54F18427. The Court has reconvened. Let the record reflect that the witness T'Pol is present, as is counsel for the prosecution and defense."
Having made that announcement, the judge fixed a basilisk stare on the slight figure on the witness stand. "Ms. T'Pol, it is my understanding from speaking with Counsel S'Hella, you have decided to comply with the Court's admonition, and will answer all questions, subject to objection by either counsel, is that correct?"
The Vulcan met her gaze calmly. "Yes, your Honor."
"Ma'am, I'll remind you that you're still under oath. Do you understand that?"
"Yes, your Honor."
From across the courtroom, Jon looked at her intently. There was nothing different in her looks, nothing he could put his finger on; if asked, he couldn't even have said what made him look at her so hard. But still, he thought there was something…
"Lieutenant Commander Hicks, you may resume your questioning."
"Thank you, your Honor." He looked at his papers and began again, his voice still perfectly patient.
The first few questions just seemed to go over the facts from earlier on, that she'd kept a whole load of relevant information to herself because it was classified and the High Command would rather it be kept secret than revealed to help a rescue attempt. Then it was established that even when the captain had possession of what facts she'd chosen to reveal, he'd still ordered it to be a rescue operation.
The scans they'd taken on arrival had told them something, but not much.
"So it would be correct to say, that when Captain Archer, you, Lieutenant Reed and Corporal Hawkins entered the Seleya, you had no knowledge of the conditions inside the ship, nor the conditions of the crew, is that correct?"
"Yes."
Jon found his palms were damp. Even now the memories were harrowing: the ill-lit, badly damaged corridors, the report of blood. Vulcan blood. The growing conviction that something here was terribly, dreadfully wrong – and, gnawing at the back of his mind, the ghastly video of the crew of the Vaankara that he'd watched back on Earth, people famed for their calm and dignity attacking one another like wild animals…
"You and Captain Archer opened the hatch together to the compartment from which the banging sound came from, correct?"
"Yes."
"Upon opening the compartment you were immediately attacked by a Vulcan wielding a metal bar, correct?"
"Yes."
"When this happened to you, did you believe that this Vulcan was trying to kill you?"
"Yes."
"In fact, you shot the Vulcan crew member with your phase pistol, correct?"
"Yes."
"In fact, when you shot the crew member with your phase pistol it had little or no effect on him, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"In fact, if Captain Archer had not disarmed the Vulcan crew member and stunned him, in all likelihood, you would have been killed, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"So, it would be fair to say that Captain Archer saved your life from this Vulcan crewman who was trying to kill you, is that correct?"
"Yes."
She could at least have looked at me when she said that. I saved her goddamn life and here she is trying to get me sent to jail and drummed out of Starfleet.
Trip says she's being forced. Okay, maybe she is, but ... hell.
Hicks was moving on, covering the discovery of the damage to the stunned Vulcan crewman's synaptic pathways and what the rescue party had been able to deduce from it. And, more importantly, what effect it appeared to have on the affected person.
"Captain Archer ordered that the stunned Vulcan crewman be carried back to the shuttlepod, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"Based upon your two plus years of experience as the Executive Officer of the Enterprise, watching Captain Archer daily in command of Enterprise, and in different situations, numerous encounters with different aliens, including Vulcans, had you reached an opinion as to whether Captain Archer held such animus towards aliens and/or Vulcans that he would either intentionally, or recklessly or wantonly kill them if the situation presented itself?"
"He displayed initial resentment towards Vulcans for personal reasons but never to such a degree that he wished them actual physical harm."
'You have no idea how much I'm restraining myself from knocking you on your ass.' Though to be fair, Jon felt he'd shown an inordinate amount of restraint by not sending a serving plate sailing at Captain Vanik's head at some point during that excruciating dinner.
"Is your answer the same for Lieutenant Reed?"
"Yes."
"Is it not a fact that from the very beginning, when the automated distress signal was intercepted from the Seleya, Captain Archer and Lieutenant Reed treated this mission for what it was, a rescue mission?"
"Yes."
"The stunned Seleya crewman couldn't be returned to Enterprise because of the approach of, what you considered to be, two hostile members of the Seleya crew, isn't that correct?"
"Yes."
"And you believed it was reasonable and appropriate to stun them because they appeared, to you, to be trying to kill you, Captain Archer, Lieutenant Reed, and Corporal Hawkins, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"Is it not a fact that during the entire time that this rescue mission was aboard the Seleya, neither you, nor Captain Archer, nor Lieutenant Reed, nor Corporal Hawkins came across any Vulcan crew members who were not trying to kill you?"
"Yes."
Out of the corner of his eye Jon saw the prosecuting attorneys fidgeting, and guessed that this talk of crazy Vulcans must be extremely discomforting to a species who prided themselves on their mental control.
The polite inquisition then moved on to the fact that from that point on the boarding party had been under almost constant attack by members of the Seleya crew whose intentions had been openly murderous.
"In fact, at this point in time you considered the Seleya crew capable of killing some or all of the members of the boarding party, correct?" asked the attorney.
"Those we had encountered up to this point were, yes. We had no evidence that the entire crew had become hostile."
He steamrollered over this as the irrelevance it was. "In fact, at this point in time, every member of the crew of the Seleya you or members of the boarding party had encountered, attacked you or the boarding party immediately upon encounter, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"In fact, at this point in time, you and the boarding party were significantly outnumbered, under constant attack, and in danger of being overrun and killed, is that correct?"
"Yes."
It could hardly be denied. From the first attack Jon had been aware just how risky the situation might become, but by then he was beginning to wonder if they'd actually make it out of there alive.
Hawkins had, on his own initiative, changed the selector on his phase rifle to 'kill' because the stun setting had little or no effect on the Seleya crew members. And even though the stun setting was not effective on the crew of the Seleya, T'Pol had ordered that he keep his rifle on stun, even at the risk of him being killed.
Hicks' voice hardened. "In fact, you were more concerned about not killing Seleya crewmen who were trying to kill you and the boarding party, than you were about keeping the boarding party alive by ordering the crewmen be stunned, isn't that correct?"
At the time, the captain had just thought she was hoping the situation could be resolved without resorting to killing – after all, multiple stun hits did work. But he'd suspected that Malcolm had more than half agreed with the corporal's reasoning and action, and had his finger poised to switch the setting on his own rifle.
By this time the attorney reminded Jon of an anaconda. Millimeter by tiny, patient, murderously precise millimeter, the coils were tightening, tightening, while the prey grew slowly weaker.
The topic moved on to the discovery that their escape route back to the shuttlepod had been deliberately blocked and their situation was now even more desperate.
T'Pol's solution had been to recommend that the team move to the bridge to use its communication equipment – a location which was seven decks away, and accessible only through an enemy of over a hundred homicidal Vulcan crew members, not including those who might have revived since being stunned.
The Seleya's launch bay, and whatever shuttles it contained, was far closer and would have provided an easier route to escape. But it hadn't been available because it was depressurized by damage.
A note of faint incredulity now entered the attorney's voice. "So in, effect, you, as the only member of the team to have served on the Seleya, and as the only member of the team who knew the configuration and layout of the Seleya because of service on it for over a year, could not come up with any solution to this life and death situation, that didn't required fighting potentially one hundred and forty-seven homicidal Vulcans through seven decks, to reach the bridge, is that correct?"
"Yes. The depressurization of so many decks had rendered the alternative options for escape unviable and the crew had disabled the standard deck communications systems. The comm controls were situated on the bridge, there was nowhere else from which they could be accessed."
"Then the reality was, there were no good solutions for Captain Archer, you, Lieutenant Reed, and Corporal Hawkins, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"Every solution carried with it a risk of failure, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"In fact, the only option left, and the shortest distance to move, was for the team to move through four bulkhead positions, and an unknown number of hostile Vulcans, that separated the team from the shuttlepod the team came over on, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"And, though you advised it would be difficult, you didn't object to the plan, did you?" pressed Hicks silkily.
"No. It appeared to me to present the best chance of success."
He nodded and moved on to the subject of Corporal Hawkins, who'd sustained a serious injury to his arm in the fighting earlier – an injury so severe that the captain had decided that escape had to take a back seat while they got the MACO treated in Sickbay.
The attorney's tone grew a shade smoother. "It was also about this time you told Captain Archer you were feeling anxiety when he told you that you didn't look well, isn't that correct?"
"Yes."
"In fact, your sense of anxiety had begun once you came aboard the Seleya, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"In fact your sense of anxiety had been increasing since you came aboard the Seleya, is that correct?"
"Yes," she admitted reluctantly.
"In fact, you never told your commanding officer, Captain Archer, of your increasing feeling of anxiety until he asked you, is that correct?"
"Yes."
Smoothness now acquired the first hint of accusation. "In fact you, and every member of an away team, are trained to report any unusual conditions, including how they are physically or mentally affected while on an away mission, is that correct?"
"Yes."
It was the absolute truth. And even though she'd been trained to do so, she'd failed to say anything about her problems until well into the mission to rescue the Seleya's crew, by which time her failing control of herself was about to contribute even more to the danger. Slowly and systematically she was forced to admit all this.
"Captain Archer was concerned about your deteriorating mental condition, is that correct?"
Another hesitation. "I believe so, yes."
The pause on his part was clearly to let those confessions sink in. The coils were tightening again, and even despite the fact that the suffocation was being carried out in his and Malcolm's defense, Jon found his ribs aching in sympathy.
"As time passed, your anxiety levels continued to increase to the point it was affecting your ability to think logically, is that correct?"
"Yes."
Jon glanced aside. Beyond Sinclair, Malcolm was staring at nothing, his face grim; perhaps he too was back in that nightmare aboard the Seleya, where by this time the prospect of being able to rescue any of the hapless crew had been receding into non-existence and their main aim was being forced to change to saving themselves.
The stealthy assault continued, leading the hapless victim through what had happened next: the discovery of the wretched chief engineer of the Seleya, immobilized in Sickbay, who became violent when they'd attempted to communicate with him. Not one word seemed to penetrate his crazed mind or abate his struggles to free himself, undoubtedly with the intention of launching an attack on them if he managed it.
"At this point in time, you were not just feeling anxiety, you were losing control of your emotions as well, were you not?"
"Yes," she replied, low-voiced. S'Hella made another note.
"In fact, Vulcan emotions are so volatile, you must meditate each day to keep them in control, isn't that correct?"
"Yes."
"In fact, Vulcan emotions are so volatile that before the time of Surak and the Awakening, Vulcan clans routinely slaughtered each other in endless wars, isn't that correct?"
"Objection, relevance!" S'Hella rose. "This is ancient history, and bears no relation to modern-day Vulcan mentality."
Commander Augustine frowned thoughtfully. "I'll allow it as a legitimate line of questioning. Proceed."
"Yes."
"In fact, at this time you were already slipping into these pre-Surak and Pre-Awakening emotions, isn't that correct?"
"Yes."
"In fact, you were becoming increasingly volatile, emotional, belligerent, aggressive, and losing your ability to reason logically and rationally, is that correct?"
She closed her eyes briefly and admitted it. After that, she could not withhold an admission that she'd told Captain Archer she was becoming like the crewmen of the Seleya, or that these were 'extremely violent, vicious, and homicidal'.
"Yes."
He continued remorselessly. "The crew of the Seleya, while you, Captain Archer, Lieutenant Reed and Corporal Hawkins were on board, were relentless and violent in their efforts to kill all of you, is that correct?"
"Yes."
Yes; by this time she'd been losing all of her ability to think and reason logically. Jon remembered his horror when he'd realized how bad she was becoming.
Now the topic moved on to Captain Archer's attitude towards Vulcan in general, during the design and building of the Enterprise and its warp engine. She admitted to being aware before being posted aboard Enterprise of his belief that Vulcans held Earth and his father back in the development of the Warp 5 engine.
Though originally she'd been temporarily assigned to Enterprise and the mission to Qo'noS, Captain Archer asked her to remain on board as his Executive Officer and Science Officer. Having established that fact, Hicks asked if, during the first two years before the Expanse mission, the captain had ever treated her unfairly?
"In the beginning our relationship was slightly difficult, as he believed I had been placed on his ship in order to act as a spy for the High Command, but after that, no."
'Slightly difficult'. Jon controlled a rueful smile. Vulcans and their talent for understatement; he'd been livid when she'd been forced on him, the Vulcan spy on his captaincy and his ship. But that said, to begin with her behavior had reinforced every preconception he'd had about her species; she'd been arrogant and condescending, far more interested in making him concede defeat than in helping him to salvage the situation when the Suliban suddenly and unexpectedly invaded his ship and kidnapped the Klingon he'd been transporting home.
"During the first two years before the Expanse mission did Captain Archer indicate to you in any way that he did not trust you?"
"After the initial difficulties I have mentioned, no."
"During the first two years before the Expanse mission did Captain Archer ever threaten you with physical violence because you are Vulcan?"
Jon closed his eyes. Here it comes – 'You have no idea how much I'm restraining myself from knocking you on your ass.'
"Captain Archer has never offered violence to any of his crew," she said levelly.
He opened his eyes again. Damn, as Trip would say.
But there again, when that had happened she hadn't been one of his crew. She'd been a member of Ambassador Soval's staff, oozing disdain while they argued over handing over a dead Klingon or a live one.
She hadn't had to use that distinction…
"Objection, the answer is non-responsive. Motion to strike the answer."
The judge unleashed a warning glance. "The objection is sustained. The answer is stricken from the record. Ma'am, please listen to the question and answer it."
"Ma'am, listen to the question carefully: During the first two years before the Expanse mission did Captain Archer ever threaten YOU with physical violence because you are Vulcan?"
"No."
'Because she was Vulcan'? No. Because she was being a condescending, obnoxious, patronizing little… But however much he might have threatened, he'd never have carried through, regardless of whatever species she was. He suspected she knew exactly why he'd responded to her the way he had, and that was why she'd given that answer.
Hicks was going on, asking whether, during the first two years before the Expanse mission, Captain Archer had ever threatened any Vulcans with violence or death, that Enterprise came in contact with while on its mission of exploration.
There were definitely times when you lived to be thankful for not having used a dinner-plate as a weaponized Frisbee when you were dining with the universe's least gracious dinner guest, however much you'd been tempted to.
"In fact, Captain Archer told you, at this point in time on the Seleya, that what was happening to the Seleya crew was not going to happen to you, isn't that correct?"
"Yes."
"So Captain Archer tried to reassure you, telling you that they would take the scans back to Dr. Phlox and he would determine what was happening to the Vulcan crew, and that they would ensure it would not happen to you, is that correct?"
"Yes."
Another pregnant pause. This is the officer you're up there helping to prosecute – a captain who did everything to help and reassure you, even though you were turning into a liability in a situation that was already deadly.
Then he moved on again, detailing the way that as the team was making its way to the engineering deck, her thinking, logic, and mental acuity were continuously being degraded, up till the point when her unusual demeanor and behavior had been noticed by Corporal Hawkins.
"During this time, two more violent Seleya crewmen had to be dealt with by Captain Archer and Lieutenant Reed, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"In fact, if it wasn't for the fact that Captain Archer and Lieutenant Reed were still combat effective, you, Captain Archer, Lieutenant Reed and Corporal Hawkins would never have made it off the Seleya alive, is that correct?"
"Yes."
Once again Hicks' pause was telling. These guys saved your life as well as their own, and here are you in the witness stand trying to get them convicted of murder.
When he resumed, it was to deal with the entry into the control room in Main Engineering, where she'd given Lieutenant Reed orders to realign the actuators so she could control the bulkheads. Reed had succeeded in encrypting the hatch's locking mechanism but could not guarantee that the encryption would hold for an indefinite length of time.
The attorney glanced at his client and then back again, introducing a faint note of accusation as he asked whether she'd known how much experience Lieutenant Reed had had with Vulcan actuators; then, whether she'd asked whether he had any; and then, whether she'd known whether or not he'd ever received any instructions on how to repair Vulcan actuators. No, she was forced to admit to each of these questions, she hadn't. Nor had she known whether or not Lieutenant Reed had ever realigned a set of Vulcan actuators previously to boarding the Seleya.
"Previous to leaving Enterprise to go to the Seleya, did you give the boarding team a brief on Vulcan equipment, including actuators in particular, that would be found on Seleya?"
She swallowed. "I have already indicated there was no time for detailed briefings, even if there had been any reason to expect they would be required to handle the equipment."
"Objection, non-responsive. Motion to strike the answer."
"Objection sustained. The answer will be stricken from the record."
"Previous to leaving Enterprise to go to the Seleya, did you give the boarding team a brief on Vulcan equipment, including actuators in particular, that would be found on Seleya?"
"No, but there was no time for detailed briefings, even if there had been any reason to expect they would be required to handle the equipment."
He let that slide, and moved on to how long it had taken for Enterprise to arrive at the Seleya's location after receiving the distress call – just over two hours.
This had been more than enough time, he suggested, for her to have given the captain or Lieutenant Reed an adequate briefing on what they could expect when Enterprise arrived at the Seleya's location.
But, despite knowing it was a distress call, and what ship it was from, she hadn't. And even when upon arrival at the Seleya she'd observed that the Vulcan ship showed extensive damage to the outside of the hull, and discovered that there were decompressed decks inside, suggesting that there would be extensive damage to its interior, she still hadn't seen fit to brief any of her colleagues about what damaged equipment they might expect to find – including damaged actuators.
She stared back at him with a haggard shadow of defiance. "Yes, but I did not believe anyone would be required to use or repair it."
"Whether or not you believed the actuators would need to be repaired, they were in the realm of equipment that might need to be repaired due to the extensive damage to the Seleya, is that correct?"
"Yes."
His brows rose, and the note of incredulity was now pronounced. "You are an experienced officer, with service in the Vulcan High Command, with additional service on the ship Enterprise which was en route to provide aid because of a distress call, with hours to go before arriving, and you believed you didn't need to brief the two senior officers from Enterprise who were going with you to a ship they had never been on, and that everyone believed to be damaged. You believed it wasn't necessary to brief these officers about the ship, its layout, systems that might be damaged, or any other problems they might come upon on the Seleya, is that correct?"
"Yes," she said, defeated.
Again, he moved on. Now he asked almost rhetorically whether it was true, because of her experience as a Deputy Science Officer on the Seleya, that she was the only member of the boarding team with experience with Vulcan technology and equipment when the team boarded the ship.
Having received the required agreement, he continued, "Speaking as the second in command of Enterprise, who would be better qualified to work on Enterprise's systems and equipment, Lieutenant Reed or Commander Tucker?"
Jon thought he caught the faintest wavering in her hard-held composure. Her eyes dropped. "Commander Tucker."
"Speaking as second in command of Enterprise, who would be better qualified to work on Vulcan technology and equipment, Commander Tucker or Lieutenant Reed?"
"Commander Tucker," she repeated almost soundlessly, still not raising her eyes.
"And once again speaking as second in command of Enterprise, who would be better qualified to work on Vulcan technology and equipment, if Commander Tucker were not available – Lieutenant Reed or Lieutenant Hess, Commander Tucker's second in command of Engineering?"
"Lieutenant Hess, if she had been present. But Lieutenant Reed is a qualified and competent engineer and should have been perfectly capable of carrying out my instructions."
Hicks paused. Then, after clarifying Lieutenant Reed's position as Enterprise's Armory Officer, he established that the lieutenant was trained on the use and repair of Enterprise's defensive weapon systems. And suggested – that point having been duly conceded – that though Lieutenant Reed had some experience in engineering, it was not the same knowledge, training, and experience as that of either Commander Tucker or Lieutenant Hess.
The point was inarguable. T'Pol did not try.
Hicks bored back into the attack. "When you gave Lieutenant Reed the orders to realign the bulkhead actuators, you, Lieutenant Reed, Captain Archer and Corporal Hawkins had, since boarding the Seleya, had been in a constant fight for your lives due to the violent and homicidal actions of the Seleya crew, isn't that correct?"
"Yes."
"When you gave Lieutenant Reed the order to realign the actuators, you assumed that he could do it, based solely on your verbal instructions, given while you were, unknown to him at the time, under the deleterious effect of trellium, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"When you gave Lieutenant Reed the order to realign the actuators, you were not only under the influence of the trellium, which had turned the crew of the Seleya violent and homicidal, but under the stress of trying to access the transmitter, isn't that correct?"
"Yes."
"When you gave Lieutenant Reed the order to realign the actuators, you were losing your ability to control your emotions, think logically, and think rationally, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"It's actually entirely possible that you gave Lieutenant Reed the wrong instructions on how to repair the actuators due to you being under the influence trellium and the damage caused to your synaptic pathways which was causing you to lose control, reverting you to more primitive and violent emotions, is that correct?"
Another flash of despairing defiance. "It's possible, but I believe my instructions were correct."
His voice hardened. "So even as you stand here today in this Courtroom, you cannot testify to a moral certainty that you gave him the right instructions, while under the influence of trellium, to repair the actuators, is that correct?"
There was a pause. She cast a single, hunted glance at Malcolm. "Yes."
The attorney glanced at his documents and seemed to take another moment to let that admission sink in before continuing.
Now he began concentrating on the way that the effects of the trellium had been cumulative over time on her emotional controls. Step by step, he forced the admission that her emotional control was by then so deteriorated that she became paranoid – to the point where she'd accused both the captain and the lieutenant of conspiring against her.
Jon saw the despair in her eyes, and his own heart contracted.
Hicks leaned forward. "You were so out of control, so paranoid, on the verge of becoming violent, that you pulled a phase pistol, selector set to kill, and threatened to kill Captain Archer because you believed, due to the influence of the trellium, it would be in self-defense, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"You believed that Captain Archer was going to kill you, didn't you?"
"Objection, no foundation!" S'Hella stood up. "This question calls for an opinion."
The judge considered briefly. "In view of the testimony so far, I believe there is sufficient foundation to continue. Objection overruled. Continue, Counsel."
The Prosecution attorney sat down again with an irritated rustle of robes.
Hicks went on as if there had been no interruption at all, merely repeating the question. "You believed that Captain Archer was going to kill you, didn't you?"
"Yes."
"Your belief that Captain Archer wanted to kill you was wrong, wasn't it?"
"Yes." Her voice was very low.
"Your belief that Captain Archer was lying was wrong, wasn't it?"
"Yes."
"Your belief that Captain Archer wanted to kill the Seleya crew was wrong, wasn't it?"
For the first time she looked at Jon directly. The beautiful brown eyes were full of sadness. "Yes."
The pained incredulity was back again as the attorney pursued that she'd been so paranoid she'd even accused Dr. Phlox, a physician who'd treated her for three years, of intending to cause the deaths of the crew of the Seleya. Whereas the reality had been that communication with Enterprise had been lost due to the actions of the Seleya's crew, who were even now hammering at the hatch, and the compartment was being flooded with highly toxic hexafluorine gas which could not be turned off. As for the matter of whether the Vulcan crew could be saved, Captain Archer had been informed by Dr. Phlox, a highly respected Denobulan physician and scientist, that this was impossible.
"In fact, Dr. Phlox has treated you for three years without complaint from you as to his professionalism, competency, and knowledge of Vulcan physiology, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"And, Captain Archer acted on the best advice he could receive at the time because you were under the influence of trellium, which was causing the degradation of your synaptic pathways, and which was causing you to be paranoid and violent, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"In fact, your mental and physical condition were poor, by your own testimony, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"In fact, your mental condition had deteriorated to the point that you fought Captain Archer, and the others, all the way, refusing to cooperate at every turn, as he and the team tried to leave the Seleya, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"In fact, attacks by the Seleya crew continued right until you were finally able to board Shuttlepod One, is that correct?"
"Yes."
He took a deep breath. "Sub-Commander T'Pol, you have no memory of what happened to you after you left the Seleya and returned to the Enterprise, is that correct?"
She looked at him wearily. "Yes."
"You are aware you were taken to sickbay on Enterprise, though, is, that correct?"
"Yes."
"And you are aware that all medical procedures are recorded visually, with an audio competent, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"Have you reviewed that video?"
"No."
The attorney turned to face the judge.
"Your honor, I would like to play the audio/video portion of Sub-Commander T'Pol in sickbay when she first entered. The video was pre-marked by the clerk of the Court as Defense Exhibit A, for identification. Opposing counsel and both defense counsel have reviewed the video, and I believe there is no objection, either to foundation or chain of custody, by the Prosecution, is that correct, Counsel?"
Counsel for the Prosecution rose. No emotion at all could be discerned on his face, which was currently schooled into faintly reptilian impassivity.
"Yes. No objection, your honor."
The video screen on one wall lit up.
The action was frozen at the moment before Sickbay's doors burst open. Next moment the action began, as the gurney was pushed forcibly between them by a disheveled and bleeding Captain Archer, trying his best to hold down the screaming, fighting woman who was lying on it.
"She's coming to," he panted.
"Let me go. Let me go!" she shrieked. Her hands clawed for his throat, inhumanly strong; it had been all he could do to fend them off.
"Stop!"
"I'll kill you!"
Once again the memories came back, rending. His assurance that they weren't going to hurt her had fallen on completely deaf ears.
She'd writhed in his grip. Her eyes, usually so clear and calm, had blazed with terrifying hatred.
"You liar! No! Get away from me!"
Fortunately Phlox was less reluctant to face unpleasant necessity. The Denobulan had lost no time in grabbing the restraints and buckling them into place, leaving his patient to scream and struggle in vain.
"The damage is more severe than I'd expected," he'd said somberly.
On top of the failure to rescue anyone from the Seleya, the news had been crushing. "Can you reverse it?"
"I'm not sure. T'Pol…"
"What's he doing?" The Vulcan glared, trying to dodge the hypospray.
It was pitiful to see her like this. "It's all right." He tried to keep his voice soothing. "He's trying to help you."
Her face was an insane, contorted mask of loathing. "He's trying to kill me! You killed the others. Murderers! Get away!"
She couldn't dodge the hypospray for long, though she'd flailed so hard he was terrified she'd hurt herself. Gently but firmly he took hold of her head to steady it, and endured her screams until the sedative finally went in and her shrieks slurred into silence.
The recording ended as the gurney with her on it was rolled into the Imaging Chamber.
For a moment there was a heavy silence in the court.
Commander Hicks broke it. "Sub-Commander T'Pol, after you had recovered, you were told by Captain Archer that your actions while on board the Seleya, and the actions of the Seleya's crew, were from the effects of the trellium on Vulcan physiology, is that correct?"
"Yes," she answered dully.
"After hearing this, you requested that Captain Archer drop you off at the first habitable planet Enterprise came to, is that correct?"
"Yes."
"Captain Archer told you that he would not do that because he doesn't leave any of his crew behind, is that correct?"
"Yes."
Everyone knew the slaughter was over.
Finally Hicks stepped back and transferred his gaze to Commander Augustine. "Your honor, the defense would request that Exhibit A, marked for identification, be moved into evidence."
The judge looked at Counselor S'Hella and asked, "Any objection, Counsel?"
With a sigh, "No your honor."
"The defense motion is granted. Exhibit A is moved into evidence." She turned her gaze back to Commander Hicks, who responded, "No further questions, your honor."
The judge glanced at Commander Sinclair. "Do you have any further questions, Counsel?"
He rose briefly. "I have no questions, your Honor."
"Then the witness is excused."
Despite himself, Jon sagged with relief. He didn't watch as T'Pol was escorted from the stand, though.
He couldn't.
