Ticonderoga was first up. "Were you aware PNS Zulfiquar that days before the bombing, Iraqi forces were storing weapons in your hospital?" She asked. "I was." The frigate replied. "It 'twas common knowledge." "Storing weapons and ammunition in a hospital, is that not a violation of the Geneva Convention?" "Objection, PNS Zulfiquar is not a legal authority nor is the Pakistani Navy on trial here." FS Horizon, the frigate serving as the lead prosecution, growled. "Sustained." ground out HMS Dauntless, one of the judges. Ticonderoga sighed. "How did it make you feel, as a medical professional, knowing that there were deadly weapons closest to your patients berths?" "I was uneasy." Zulfiquar allowed. "Did you protest?" "Yes. It did no good." "And when the Iraqi warships occupied the compound did you protest?" "Yes. They told us they were there to protect us from American and British aggressors." Zulfiquar replied, barely able to stifle a snort. Dauntless and Conqueror exchanged amused glances. "But you stayed, knowing that a battle was likely." Ticonderoga said. "There were patients still there. We had no choice but to stay!" Zulfiquar protested. "But your army had a choice didn't they? They could've left the hospital alone." Ticonderoga said. "So could yours. Yours could've gone around. You didn't have to bomb us. Such destruction. Now we have no hospital. Where will our people go for medical care?!" Zulfiquar cried. Ticonderoga's gaze was hard as she replied "You should've thought of that before your precious army fired on our forces, sparking a battle." "Objection!" FS Horizon began. "Withdrawn, no further questions." Ticonderoga said before returning to her place beside Enterprise.
Conqueror was next. The new witness, Almagir, had lost her sister in the attack. "I'm sorry for your loss PNS Almagir I'll try not to keep you too long." She said. "You have a soul sister?" She asked. "Yes, she is a training ship." Almagir replied. "When was the last time you saw her?" Conqueror asked. "6 years ago." Almagir replied. "What happened to her?" The sub asked. "Relevance?" Horizon questioned. "Goes to motivation your honor." Conqueror replied to Dauntless. "Freeing the Iraqi people from Saddam's tyranny is one of the reasons the coalition forces came to Iraq." "I'll allow it Conks." Dauntless replied. "But make it brief." "What happened to your soul sister, Almagir?" Conqueror asked again. "Saddam's men come, they arrest her and take her to a drydock." Almagir replied. "Was there a trial?" Conqueror asked. "No. Saddam gets one but my mate does not." "Was she released after Saddam's incarceration last year?" Conqueror asked. "No, she is disappeared." "What do you mean by disappeared?" "I am sure she is dead. But no proof so I also hope." Almagir replied. "Thank you, no further questions." Conqueror made to return to Enterprise but Almagir wasn't finished. "Saddam took my mate. Americans took my sister. What is difference?!" Conqueror made to reply but Ticonderoga shook her head. "Saddam killed to take away freedom." She said. "We Americans kill to return it. That's the difference." Horizon shot her a glare which Ticonderoga returned. "Objection, your honor." The French ship growled. "Withdrawn." Ticonderoga said, holding the other cruiser's gaze. It was clear these two would be in a constant battle.
The court was adjured until 10:00 the next morning. That night, there was trouble. Brandenburg's sister was babysitting one of their close friends, a harbor tug, and she'd gone missing. The German ship was in a panic. "She said she'd been missing for eight hours. I don't vant to desert you." "Just leave us your research and we'll manage." Los Angeles replied. "They'll find her before I get back, right? If not..." Brandenburg trailed off, clearly distressed. The submarine waited for her to calm down. Eventually, the German called on her military training and stood at attention. "Permission to return home ma'am?" She asked Los Angeles. "Permission granted. Call us when you get news." Los Angeles replied and the German left.
De Gaulle moved forward. "USS Mercy, in your speech did you state that the military charter allowed for the use of action in self defense?" She asked. Mercy was well versed in the rules of war as established by the United Nations. She had opposed the coalition in Iraq because she did not believe it legal. De Gaulle was about to turn that reasoning on its head. "Under certain circumstances. But the United States was not attacked by Iraq." She replied. "Ask the widows and orphans of 9/11 about that one." Ticonderoga muttered. As far as she was concerned, every Middle Eastern country was a threat and she would take them all out if she could. "Not yet." De Gaulle replied and up at the judges table FS Mistral chuckled. "But here's a man with a record of using weapons of mass destruction is it not reasonable to anticipate he would use them again." De Gaulle said. "No, WOMD were found." "Not yet." "Also, preventive war is not a legitimate reason for armed violence. When conflict arises, peace must be the ultimate goal." "That's your opinion." De Gaulle said sternly. "Well now do you really believe it will ever come?" "The Ancients say it will." Mercy replied. "The destroyer dell with the sub." De Gaulle's eyes briefly flickered skyward before she replied "Well before the destroyer rules against eating me, we better get the wolf to agree." "Your honor!" Horizon complained. "Shut it, ISIS butt kisser!" Ticonderoga snarled. "What'd you call me?!" Horizon rose to face the American cruiser and the two got in each other's faces. Conqueror and Enterprise had to work together to pull their friend back and reluctantly Horizon backed down. "That's enough out of both of you." Dauntless' gaze swept over the two hostiles who both obediently lowered their heads.
De Gaulle proceeded with her questioning. "Did you not suggest Mercy that the Security Council needed to rewrite the rule book on the use of force?" She asked. "For certain type of threats." Mercy replied. "Terrorist groups using weapons of mass destruction?" De Gaulle asked and Mercy sighed. "Yes." She agreed. "Thank you Mercy." De Gaulle returned to her berth, head held high.
Next on the stand was Cole. The little destroyer had agreed to testify before the court. It was a bold move on her part. If the defense lost, she could be charged with war crimes. "Cole, please explain to the court why you authorized the attack on the hospital?" Los Angeles asked. "The marines were taking fire ma'am. Being hit on two fronts. One of those was the hospital, ma'am." Cole replied. "So the hospital was a legitimate military target?" Los Angeles asked. "Affirmative ma'am. We wanted to avoid hospitals, mosques, historical sights. If the Iraqis hadn't used it as a base, it would still be standing today." Cole said. "Thank you."
Horizon came forward and Cole braced herself, shooting the Pakistani a harsh glare to show her distrust. "What gave you the right to be in Iraqi waters in the first place?" She asked. "I was a destroyer ma'am, following orders." Cole replied. "Of course." Horizon looked smug and that gave Cole the desire to wipe it off her face. "And then I saw the mass graves. There was a hospital ship who watched her sister's rudder get cut off. She bled to death after three days and no one bothered to help her. She just lay there in her berth, bleeding out. And there was a cruiser who wasn't given her ration of water just because she'd been seen caring for a wounded soldier left to die in the street." Cole's eyes were hard and her voice equally so as she hissed "I'm not going to say my being in Iraqi waters was a right. It was an obligation." Horizon quickly realized her question had backfired and she stepped down swiftly. "No further questions your honor." She stammered and returned to her anchorage.
"I must say Cole, the fleet would be proud of you." Enterprise smiled. "Thank you Enterprise." She replied. Enterprise didn't notice the cruiser sneaking up behind her, forward gun barrel raised to fire but Cole did. She pushed past Enterprise, taking the shot herself. It hit her on the side of her bridge, next to her left eye. The worst part was Cole didn't even scream as she rolled on her side, blood pouring from the wound and staining the water red. PNS Babir was restrained and taken under arrest while Horizon watched on, stunned at the act. Conqueror shoved her fairwater fins against the wound, trying to get the bleeding under control. Cole quivered beneath her. Ticonderoga looked down from above. "Hang in there kiddo." She murmured.
"Your witness and victims units are supposed to protect all witnesses, not just the prosecution!" Conqueror snarled to Horizon. Cole had been taken to the nearest hospital and was being treated for her wound while the Royal Navy submarine descended upon the Dutch embassy in force. She had an axe to grind. "My apologies, HMS Conqueror. It was a tragic incident." "Attempted murder is hardly an incident." Los Angeles growled. "If Cole dies, I want her killer to be extradited to the United States to face trial for murder!" Enterprise snarled. "Where justice is swift and fair." Horizon said mockingly. "That justice has no death penalty." Enterprise retorted. "Which the bitch certainly deserves." Los Angeles added. The phone rang and Horizon answered. After a few moments she hung up and said "Cole is out of surgery. She will be fine." "I still want that bitch interrogated by US investigators." Enterprise said. "I'm sure the Dutch authorities will be happy to pass along whatever information they find." "That's not acceptable." The carrier hissed and led the way out. Conqueror began to follow but paused. She turned back to Horizon and the hatches on her back raised. "I would just kill you now." She said. "But then I wouldn't be a proper British lady so I will give you a warning instead. I suggest you watch your back from now on because you never know when I'm gonna shove a missile up your ass!" With that the sub stalked off, hatches still raised and weapons bared.
Enterprise didn't get far as there was a guard outside the door. "You are still under the courts' jurisdiction Enterprise. However I am prepared to make you a deal." Horizon said. "I drop all charges in exchange for reparations from the US. You avoid jail time. Everyone wins." "Accept you win a little more." Los Angeles snorted. "Will that be so bad? Does the world see you as the arrogant bullies you seem to be." Horizon snapped back. "Arrogant." Enterprise whispered, moving forward so she was right in Horizon's face. The French cruiser actually shrunk back a bit and Enterprise felt pleasure at seeing the fear in her eyes. "I think originally that's a French word is it?" "The French have given you many words. Still we don't impose our culture on the world as you do." "You have an inferiority complex." Enterprise snorted. "After all these decades of being friends and allies you still don't have any idea of who we are." "Tell me then. Who are you?" Horizon challenged.
"Ever since our founding, America has been the symbol of hope for the world. And we remain so today. We accept our responsibility as all civilized nations should." Enterprise said. She stood in front of the panel of judges. The night before she'd had a discussion with Missouri. She could see the battleship now in the back of the courtroom. She gave the carrier an encouraging smile which spurred Enterprise on. "To fight against oppression and tyranny. But when we fight, we don't fight for land or oil or money or to impose our will. We take up arms against violent men who threaten our freedom and the freedom of others." "I commend your lofty goal of saving the world." Horizon said. "But some may say the hundreds of Iraqi civilians you have killed is nothing short of evil." "The unintentional deaths of civilians is a tragic consequence of war. The purposeful slaughter of American civilians followed in the Middle East by jubilant dancing in the street. That is evil!" "Did the world ask you to be its savior?" Horizon asked. Enterprise growled. "In 1917, in 1941 and throughout the 40 years of the Cold War. The world asked us for help! And we gave it! But now the war on terrorism has begun and we can't wait to be asked. We must do what has to be done." "So, you feel free to attack of which you disprove?" Horizon sneered. "If that nation poses an intimate threat we reserve the right to use military force to protect ourselves." Enterprise replied. Horizon was speechless. She'd run out of ideas. "Do you have any further questions, prosecutor?" Dauntless asked. "No." Horizon replied and returned to her place. "Council?" Dauntless turned to the defense team. Los Angeles stood. "The defense rests." She replied, unable to keep the smug tone out of her voice and she couldn't resist rubbing it in a little. Horizon winced and shrunk back. Ticonderoga smirked and raised one of her gunbarrels in a rude gesture at the French cruiser. "Bitch deserves it." She thought as Horizon retreated.
"Just got word from Brandenburg, she found her tug. Turns out she was with some local hippies." Los Angeles said. "That's good to hear." Enterprise sighed. They had gathered outside the courtroom as the jury deliberated. Their chances were good. After all, Enterprise's team of lawyers had made a fine case, even with one of their own missing. Enterprise owed them. "Before we go in, I'd like to say something." Her team fell silent and they turned to her. "Go ahead Enterprise." Los Angeles said. "As I went into this, I'll admit I had my doubts. I made assumptions about all of you. De Gaulle, I don't think you want me to repeat what I thought." The French ship chuckled. "Eh have heard worse than fat and lazy, Enterprise." She replied. Enterprise briefly wondered how the carrier knew that before deciding she didn't want to know. "Conqueror, Los Angeles, well I'll admit my doubts about you two were the strongest. I didn't like submarines before now but getting to know you two, I know now I couldn't have asked for better in a surface ship! Thank you." "Our pleasure En." Los Angeles smiled. "Tico, I had confidence in you from the get go though I'll admit I got a little worried when you started your spats with Horizon." Enterprise said. "Little bitch needed to be taken down a peg." She replied. "Thank you, all of you." Enterprise wanted to say more but she couldn't. Swallowing hard the carrier looked down, ready to embrace the tears when she felt four hulls press against hers. Ticonderoga, Los Angeles, Conqueror, and De Gaulle all showed their appreciation for defending the deputy of the US fleet.
"The use of armed force without mandate from the security council is a breach of international law." Dauntless said. "But such a breach must be weighed against the circumstances of each particular case. Would more lives be lost if Saddam's regime continued into the indefinite future. Will the accused please rise?" Enterprise and her defense council did so. "On the charge of crimes against humanity, not guilty. On the charge of war crimes, not guilty. On the charge of intentionally attacking noncombatants, not guilty. On the charge of willful destruction of civilian property, guilty. This court orders that reparations be made to the town of Tisarg in the amount of $20 million. This court is adjourned." "Congratulations Enterprise." Conqueror said. "Not sure the taxpayers will agree but that's DoD's problem." Ticondoroga grinned. Horizon approached. "I cannot say I am pleased with the verdict but I am glad that you will not spend the rest of your life in jail." She said. Enterprise murmured something in French that made De Gaulle raise a brow. "Our countries have been friends for nearly 2 decades. Such a relationship shouldn't be discarded. Let's discuss it over a glass of Merdot." Enterprise said. "After you." Horizon smiled.