I own nothing except a few characters and the plot.
STAR WARS REBELS
The New Spectres
The Court-Martial Part 2
NEW YORK - 2031
The trial resumed after Lunch with Donna Marlion testifying about the extent of Mr. Peterson's injury and to further corroborate the accounts of the incident in which Dietrich was caught ransacking Mr. Peterson's hospital room that were already given by Eric and Mr. Peterson.
"Nurse Marlion, what would have happened to Mr. Peterson's leg if he had gone to any other hospital?" Shirley asked.
"Invasive surgery and even possible amputation depending on what the tests revealed." Donna replied. Colonel Wagner came over to ask her some questions.
"Is it possible that this injury could have been self-inflicted?"
"Not at the angle that I observed when I was asked to examine the injury by the Emergency Department staff to determine if Bacta treatment was appropriate."
"You are an expert on gunshot wounds?" Wagner asked.
"I have worked in the Medical Field for 25 years. I have both seen and been involved in the treatment of thousands of gunshot wounds from both bullets and lasers. If you want to call my qualifications into question Colonel, I'll be happy to show you them and tell you about the other patients I've had to keep your men from yanking out of their hospital beds to be executed like your man tried to do to Mr. Peterson." Donna snapped at Wagner who looked at Thrawn.
"Move to strike, unresponsive."
"Denied." Thrawn said. Shirley's next witness was General Rivers.
"General Rivers, have you had a chance to review the Defendant's service record since taking over command of Remnant Security?"
"Yes I have." A.J. replied.
"What did you find?"
"Major Dietrich was flagged as a potential problem even before I opened the file. One of the more disturbing things I saw in there was the report from General Rawlkins relating to the incident in San Francisco where the witness turned up dead. He was also found to be three years overdue for a mandatory psychiatric evaluation."
"Did you compare his record to anyone else's record?"
"Major Eric Schuyler."
"What did you find?"
"I found that Major Schuyler had he not been transferred out after the operation on Ord Mantell would have been reassigned when I took command of RSB as someone whose talents would be more useful elsewhere."
"Thank you. Your witness." Shirley said and sat down as Wagner came over.
"General Rivers, you are part of the Felth Family that seems to have an increasing amount of influence over the Remnant Military as a whole. People who cross the Felth Family are often subject to punitive actions such as reassignment, demotion, and even court-martial. Your niece has a habit of doing similar things to civilians who cross her. Towing cars and losing the paperwork on them, sending Death Troopers to intimidate people, having people fired from their jobs, and even having a neighbor placed under a psychiatric commitment among other things such as the seizure of private businesses and property."
"Is there a question there?" Shirley asked Thrawn.
"Colonel Wagner, get to the point." Thrawn said.
"How can you flag my client as a problem when your niece does the exact same things my client is accused of doing?" Wagner asked.
"Because she hasn't killed any unarmed civilians for no reason."
"What about the seizure of private businesses?"
"As I understand it, the business in question was seized by General Marlion as a public nuisance after consulting with members of the Philadelphia Police about the rather long history of violent incidents at it including at least one other homicide."
"General Rivers, when you were in command of the local detachment of the 501st Legion, did you and your troops not frequently operate in a manner that was considered rather abusive to just about everyone?"
"That comment came from a Mayor who praised criminals and rewarded them with gift baskets while his wife embezzled a Billion Dollars of public funds into her own pockets."
"What else is in your RSB File?" Shirley stood up.
"Objection. Facts not in evidence."
"Come up." Thrawn told the two.
"I want to introduce this man's RSB File as a means to impeach him." Wagner said.
"Why wasn't I given this?" Shirley asked.
"RSB Files are not for civilian use." Wagner replied.
"Then they will not be used in these proceedings. I will be sending a note to your superiors about your attempts to circumvent the Rules of Evidence." Thrawn told him.
"Thank you, Grand Admiral." Shirley said as she and Wagner walked away from the bench.
"The objection is sustained."
"I have nothing further for this witness." Wagner said and sat down. The next witness was Ty who said he had never even heard of Dietrich until he was told by Eric and never signed anything to drag a civilian out of a hospital bed. Much less from a bed at the hospital that Donna works at. After Shirley finished asking him the questions she had, Wagner came over to ask Ty some questions.
"General Marlion, you don't like Remnant Security and its agents that much do you?"
"It depends on who I'm dealing with and how they conduct themselves around me, my staff, and in the city in general. When he first arrived in Philadelphia and had he not said that he was with Remnant Security, I would have thought Major Schuyler was assigned elsewhere. I was more then happy to hear that he was being reassigned from there."
"But, what about my client?"
"I was more then happy to be there for his arrest when I found out that he had tried to kill a witness to an RSB summary execution twice and forged my signature to make it look like I allowed him to do that. Nor was I fond of your Closet Racist, your Bipolar Paranoid, your ship hijacker, and somebody who ordered a civilian shot with lethal force for a charge that a court didn't even think warranted jail time."
"Let's talk about the behavior of your other two senior officers."
"Objection." Shirley called.
"Colonel Wagner, move on." Thrawn said.
"I have nothing further for this witness." Wagner told Thrawn and took his seat.
"This trial will resume tomorrow at 0930." Thrawn announced and banged the gavel.
Eric had stopped by the soup stand where Noah and Tori were tending to the typical line of customers. In front of him were a fat woman and Jacen Syndulla who was explaining the ordering process to Eric. The woman went to order first.
"Large Broccoli Cheddar." She said to Noah.
"Cup or Steel Drum?" Noah asked.
"Cup, you fool. What kind of an idiotic question is that? If I wanted to be insulted, I'd go to that shoe store around the corner with the nasty droid and the foul-mouthed Jedi Idiot who called me a Rhino."
"I'm a fool? Then you're a rhino who is leaving now. No soup for you." Noah told her. The woman gave an offended look and stormed out as Jacen came up to order.
"New flavor?" He asked Noah.
"The Broccoli Cheddar? Yeah, I'm shaking up the menu a bit. But, the Lobster Bisque is staying on it." Noah replied.
"I'll try it." Jacen said as Noah ladled out Jacen's soup and gave it to Tori who put the lid on the container and put it in a bag. Jacen paid for his soup and left as Eric came up to order.
"Major Schuyler, right?" Noah asked.
"Yeah. Lucy's brother sent me here."
"What happened to the accent?"
"I ditched it except for uncooperative people and RSB agents trying to bypass the chain of command. I was transferred out of there after Ord Mantell and sent to work with Lucy. Chris gave me a recommendation after he jump-started my appetite." Eric explained.
"The Mulligatawny? That was the first one of these soups I ever made." Noah said and ladled out a cup of the soup being discussed before handing it to Tori who took Eric's money and gave him some change that he wasn't expecting.
"Thank you." Eric said and left. He caught up to Jacen at the corner.
"He didn't throw you out like he did to that woman." Jacen said.
"He remembers me from Ord Mantell. I think he gave me a discount too."
"Probably the same one they give me and Josh. I heard Lucy included you in a large group of unofficial Felth Family members that also includes me and Colonel McKnight. I didn't want to say anything in the line." Jacen explained.
"General Marlion refers to me and Lucy as his other two kids."
"You know Noah's going to have a place in Philly opening soon."
"Yeah, Lucy told me that Darius is helping him with it after she made sure that Hondo Ohnaka wasn't involved somehow."
"Felth women are like elephants in terms of memory. Kelly won't let Tevin forget about the time that he flew into an asteroid field trying to prove that he could outfly Han Solo and Lucy hasn't forgotten about Hondo's creepy behavior back in 2019 when he tried to talk her into selling R9 to him. His big mouth landed him in jail for three months because he drew Lucy's Godmother as the Judge and tried to sell her a ton of stuff including the Mets and the Brooklyn Bridge."
"How did that happen?"
"What I was told is that Hondo was trespassing at Darius Carpenter's job back then and it required a squad of Stormtroopers to remove him from the store. He was thrown out and walked right back in after that." Jacen explained as Eric took a bite of the soup.
"I gotta sit down." Eric said.
"Yeah, you can't eat this soup standing up." Jacen told him.
"Ouch, I gotta get my witness home too." Eric said and headed for his car.
The trial resumed the next day with Wagner presenting his case. His first witness was Captain Hochster who was asked about the history of RSB interactions with members of the Felth Family and others who seemed to be included in the Felths' "Circle of Influence" over the military.
"Why were you demoted and transferred to your current post in Russia?"
"Because Tevin Felth didn't like the way I talked to members of his family."
"What happened in 2024 involving you and The Felths?"
"Tevin Felth allowed his Jedi Son-in-law to use The Force to choke me out after I had make a comment to his pregnant daughter that he didn't like."
"Would you say that this proceeding is the Felths continuing to abuse their authority or keeping the military in line?"
"Definitely an abuse of authority. If you so much as look at them wrong, they take some form of punitive action against you. Whether you are part of the military or a civilian." Hochster said.
"Your witness." Wagner said to Shirley.
"Captain Hochster, what exactly did you say or do to warrant being demoted?" She asked.
"I had an encounter with on officer who got his current rank by sleeping with Ezra Bridger for the past 12 years." Hochster replied. Chris was tempted to say something, but most everyone knew about Ezra and Landon and that Landon's rank had more to do with ability then connections and Thrawn definitely knew that.
"There was more to this story then that wasn't there? Within the span of a week you also breached security at The Pentagon and engaged in a shouting match with three Generals and then yelled at General Felth's Grandson in what was described by one Hondo Ohnaka as very low even by his standards." Shirley said.
"I have no knowledge of that report."
"You have a history of screaming when you hear the voice of a minority. In 2020, you were reprimanded by General Felth for shouting at an African-American superior officer, shouting in his ear after hearing a conversation between two African-American males one of which was a New York City Police Detective, and shouting at another officer who had arrested three people that were members of the First Order and had engaged in a brief battle with a teenage Jedi who later became General Felth's son-in-law. Two of the Generals you shouted at when you breached The Pentagon were African-Americans."
"Those are all lies."
"Then why were reports filed? Why were you court-martialed for insubordination after you got into a shouting match with Colonel McKnight? Why does Colonel McKnight describe you as a bully? Why did an African-American Deputy Chief of the NYPD feel the need to file a complaint against you in 2023 claiming that you threatened to torture, starve, and finally execute a minority suspect? Admit it Captain, you have a problem with minorities. The Felths have done nothing to you except put you in your place."
"You just wait until the Felths find a reason to turn on you."
"You were also punished by the Felths after they discovered you even bullied one of your own colleagues and screamed at his mother."
"That wimp was ruining our reputation."
"How? By being nice and respecting basic human rights? Given that Remnant Security has a reputation on par with the Gestapo or KGB, I'd say he was trying to improve it."
"He should have been shot for cowardice."
"I guess it's his luck he was transferred out before you were able to do that to him. I have nothing further." Shirley said and returned to her seat. Wagner then put Captain Schlager on the stand and asked him what he allegedly did to earn the ire of the Felths. He then stated that he believed that the Felths had it in for Remnant Security as a whole. After Wagner finished with Schlager, Shirley came over to question him.
"Captain Schlager, you were reassigned and demoted for ordering troops to open fire on an unarmed civilian in Philadelphia during October of 2030?"
"The civilian tried to breach security at an airport."
"So that justified you ordering him shot in the back? If this civilian posed that much of a danger, why did a Judge decide that the only legal charge wasn't worth jail time and said that he wanted action taken against you?" Wagner stood up.
"What does this have to do with anything?"
"Come up." Thrawn said as the two approached the bench.
"She has no business asking these questions."
"Colonel Wagner and his witnesses are claiming that the Felths are holding a grudge against Remnant Security. I am merely challenging these claims with the facts of the behavior of these witnesses that put them on the Felths' radar. This court can also take note of a ruling by a Court of Competent Jurisdiction where it is relevant to these proceedings."
"So?" Wagner asked.
"So, you opened the door and she's entitled to walk through it. If you had spent as much time educating yourself on the workings of the American Judicial System as I did instead of spending your time finding material to try and slander the Felths in here with, you would have realized that." Thrawn said to Wagner.
"I also wish to recall Major Eric Schuyler and call General Felth himself to rebut everything his witnesses are saying about the Felths and their relationship with Remnant Security."
"Fine, I get to cross-examine them. General Felth's will be quite fun." Wagner said.
"If you turn this into a Felth Family Slander Session or use material that you have not provided to Ms. Forbes, I will cut you off at the first objection." Thrawn told him.
"I want to see those files, the unredacted versions of them. Not ones where half the contents are blacked out."
"I'll see what I can do." Wagner said.
"Very well, step back." Thrawn told them.
"The objection is overruled. Captain Schlager, please answer the question."
"The subject ignored my commands to stop what he was doing." Schlager replied.
"Did you think that maybe the person couldn't hear you over the sounds of jet engines or were you just looking for an excuse to shoot an unarmed civilian? Withdrawn. You later ordered the entire Felth Family placed under surveillance. Why was that?"
"That is classified."
"Because you only did it out of spite after being demoted and reassigned for the attempted murder of an unarmed civilian hoping to find something that would make them look bad in the eyes of the public. Withdrawn, nothing further." Shirley said and sat down. Wagner had a redirect question for Schlager.
"What did you find out through all of this?"
"That his youngest son was in some sort of relationship with another man." Schlager said.
The trial resumed a couple of days later with Eric on the stand again.
"Major Schuyler, how have you been treated by the Felths?" Shirley asked.
"More or less like part of the family. Lucy has helped me settle into my post-RSB career, rebuild a relationship with my parents which was shattered by the antics of Captain Hochster. Little Caleb seems to like me. Jacen Syndulla told me a couple of days ago that they consider me part of the family the same way they consider him and Colonel McKnight as part of the family." Eric replied.
"When you were part of Remnant Security, what were the feelings of the Felths towards you?"
"Lucy felt that I didn't belong there and neither did Colonel McKnight. They noted a stark contrast between me and say Captain Hochster."
"Did anyone else have an opinion about you as a member of the RSB?"
"Jacen Syndulla after being confronted by another member of the RSB who attempted to hijack his ship said that he let me use his ship for operation on Ord Mantell simply because I had asked him nicely and told him exactly what I was doing as opposed to showing up with a pair of Death Troopers and threating to shoot him."
"Thank you." Shirley said and sat down as Wagner came over.
"Has there been a time when General Felth became annoyed with you?"
"Once, when I called him looking for Lucy because Captain Schlager had shown up with the civilian he had ordered shot. General Felth was more annoyed with Schlager then he was with me when he was told what had happened and transferred Schlager to Russia on the spot after I had called him a second time because Schlager was demanding that the civilian be turned over to him likely to never be seen or heard from again. When he demanded to speak with my superior officer, I called for Lucy because General Marlion was unavailable at the time and General Felth happened to answer the phone." Tevin Felth took the stand next.
"General Felth, what was your reaction to the conduct of the agents of Remnant Security?" Shirley asked him.
"Very annoyed. Most of their work was more abuse of the citizens and violating their rights then actual work. Major Schuyler was one of if not the only person I found there who was doing any sort of actual work. The flowing of stolen goods and recover First Order assets has been an ongoing and widespread problem for just about everyone across The Galaxy. I personally gave Major Schuyler the assignment after reviewing the files of several RSB agents in preparation for this operation. He was selected because the Sector Commanders all said that he was polite to everyone, treated the suspects with respect, and didn't show up waving Death Troopers and threatening to execute people on the spot."
"You were eager to reassign him once this operation was concluded?"
"Very much. Even more after the incident with my Grandson."
"What made you choose Philadelphia for this reassignment?"
"The Major's psych workups said that he was beaten down if not outright bullied by others there. Lucy has some experience in dealing with the victims of abuse and bullying. There had also been a spike in the amount of violence involving offworld visitors in Philadelphia that stretched General Marlion's resources rather thin. That along with the comments made about him by Lucy, Colonel McKnight, Captain Syndulla, and Admiral Vanto led to his quick reassignment to Philadelphia. The fact that his family lived in Pittsburgh had nothing to do with it. Even Hondo Ohnaka seemed to think he was too nice for an RSB agent." Tevin explained.
"There was at least one incident that you showed annoyance with Major Schuyler."
"He called my house phone looking for Lucy twice in one day. As it turned out, that was the day Captain Schlager had ordered the civilian he reportedly observed attempting to trespass at the Philadelphia Airport shot in the back. My annoyance quickly turned to Captain Schlager once I heard what was going on and that Schlager was bullying him."
"Thank you, General. Nothing further." Shirley said and sat down as Wagner came over.
"General Felth, earlier this year your daughter shot down a civilian ship off the coast of Atlantic City. Would you consider that an abuse of a civilian's rights?"
"The ship was already being pursued by fighters from both the Home Fleet and Langley Air Base when she joined the chase. It had failed to respond to any and all communications and there was a chance that it was heading for New York. I'd rather have it crash in the Atlantic Ocean then have something like what happened on September 11th happen again. A job that RSB is supposed to be doing as opposed to spying on people and summary civilian executions."
"Doesn't your daughter have a habit of seizing private property simply out of spite?"
"Is there some piece of property in particular that concerns you?"
"A bar in Philadelphia called Nolte's."
"That place was a repeat Public Nuisance with at least one other Homicide having occurred there and a documented history of violence."
"Were you aware that Major Schuyler once seized the entire contents of a bank in Philadelphia and arrested the manager?"
"The bank refused to comply with a court order to turn over documents. They were pursuing the owner of a warehouse full of weapons that had belonged to the First Order and found their way onto the Black Market. Another thing that RSB is supposed to be doing instead of imitating the Gestapo."
"Why place Remnant Security under the command of your brother-in-law?"
"Because your former Commanding Officer was not doing his job properly if Hochster felt that he was allowed to basically waltz right into The Pentagon and start screaming at Generals. If Zollet thought that he could play passive-aggressive with General Marlion. If Housner thought that he could hijack Captain Syndulla's ship at gunpoint. If Schlager thought that he would get away with trying to kill an unarmed civilian. If your client thought that he could get away with murdering unarmed civilians and silencing any witnesses to his crimes. Finally, if they think they can bully people and not complete the yearly evaluations, then there is a serious problem with the Chain of Command there and I wanted someone in command there that I could trust."
"Are you aware that President Bridger was a member of a Rebel Alliance?"
"Objection, relevance." Shirley called out.
"Colonel Wagner, I have allowed this as far as I can. The objection is sustained." Thrawn said.
"Are you aware that one of your other children is in a relationship with another man?"
"Does it look like I care? My son-in-law is Black, so I don't care." Tevin was clearly on the verge of snapping at Wagner and bringing him up on charges. He had already heard about the note from Thrawn to A.J. regarding Wagner's conduct during the trial.
"Are you aware of the interest your son-in-law has in the unborn child of a teenage girl in Philadelphia? Or that he is related to a Jedi Master who tok part in an attempt to assassinate The Emperor in 1957? Or that your own father was alleged to have shot his Commanding Officer in the back of the head during a firefight in 1977? Or that the two droids you own are the same two droids that were used to smuggle the plans to the First Death Star to the Rebel Alliance in that same year and in fact your father was part of the squadron sent to locate them and retrieve the plans?" Shirley stood up while Wagner kept asking Tevin questions.
"Now he's badgering the witness."
"One of your mentors as you entered the world of Criminal Investigation was a New York Police Detective named Lennie Briscoe who was investigated in 1996 by the Hellman Commission for stealing evidence. Whose daughter was murdered in 1998 after testifying against a drug dealer that later turned up dead in prison. The same Detective Briscoe who admitted in 2000 to tampering with evidence in a 1981 murder? Weren't you accused of Treason and Desertion by a General Veers in 2002?"
"There's an objection before the Court." Shirley said.
"Sit down and shut up, Ms. Forbes." Wagner told her.
"The objection is sustained and you will address the Court from now on, Colonel Wagner. Now, if you have any relevant questions ask them. Otherwise, this examination is over." Thrawn said and then excused Tevin after seeing that Wagner had no questions. He then adjourned the court for the day and said that he would hear closing arguments tomorrow.