A thousand apologies for the late posting! I've just started up school again so posts will probably be coming much slower for the foreseeable future, but I am fully committed to finishing my stories! Also a shout out to one particular reviewer. I apologize for lying to you regarding the absence of how this chapter ends, but at the time I had planned to pretty much end the story with the Romulan attack, so it was unintentional.

It had been just a few hours of Jim finding whatever solace he could in the silence, a silence he'd only managed to have because his entire skeleton staff onboard developed a spontaneous case of amnesia and forgot how the COMM system worked. Now, he was back to fidgeting once again in the courtroom sitting next to Cogley as he called up his next witness. He was grateful for the small diversion of pride when the judge lost patience and stopped the computer readout about halfway through the various citations, and Cogley started to speak.

"Commander Spock, upon Captain Kirk's realization and subsequent arrest of Mr. Garson, I understand he directed you to begin searching records for evidence linking him to the crime."

"Indeed."

"Would you please detail your findings for the court?"

"The first connection on record between Mr. Garson and Charles Kodos, the man colloquially referred to as 'Kodos the Executioner' was at the University of Mississippi. They were in the same graduating class, started at the same time, and took several classes together. Of particular relevance to the crisis on Tarsus IV was that the two worked together with several others on a thesis project for a sociology course they shared. The assignment was to create an outline of what a 'perfect' society would look like as well as a fictional historical record of how it came to be so. Mr. Kodos's contribution to the project was a complex plan for implementing a eugenics project designed to create a society of 'perfect' people. Comparing his project to the colony records it was clear that the lists for execution and survival created by Kodos were designed based off a streamlined version of his eugenics theories."

Kirk had to admire once again the Vulcan aptitude for emotional control. He had already heard this information and he knew he still could never have relayed it in so steady and dispassionate a tone as Spock. On the other hand, maybe he was a bit biased….

"I see. Was their time at college the only recorded connection between them?"

"It was not. During the setup of the colony on Tarsus IV, Governor Kodos employed Build 'em Better Industries (Kirk had to restrain the urge to laugh hearing Spock say that name), the construction firm which at the time already employed Mr. Garson as a senior member. Mr. Garson led the team the firm sent out to the planet by special request from the governor. In addition, during the thirteen months prior to the onset of the crisis on the colony Mr. Garson exchanged 73 private messages with a contact on Tarsus IV. The loss of records on the colony owing to the destruction make it impossible to know for certain whom he spoke with, but the 36 messages initiated by Mr. Garson were routed through the colonial government office."

You could've heard a pin drop in the courtroom at this point. Everyone stared at Spock in silence, just absorbing the magnitude of the information imparted by that monotone. Finally, after giving the jury a moment to let it simmer, Cogley spoke up quietly.

"Nothing further, your honor."

Kirk felt a twinge of relief at having chosen Cogley. In addition to the evocation of Kirk's mentor, the man was clearly a master at his craft, leaving nothing to chance. He knew just how to work the jury into absorbing that testimony, getting them to feel the impact of the information and squeeze its damnation so deeply into their minds that it would take a tractor beam to yank it back out.

Fasel stood up.

"Commander Spock, you are a scientist."

"I am."

"You pride yourself on empirical data, on fact, correct?"

"I would not use the expression of pride, but I accept your general point."

"Then, Commander, can you tell us which piece of evidence you have explicitly names my client as having been involved with the Tarsus massacre?"

"That was not the purpose of my testimony."

This seemed to throw him for a small loop. "I'm sorry?"

"My testimony regarding my findings were not designed to show explicitly that Mr. Garson was guilty. It merely reinforced the point already made by Captain Kirk."

"So you admit that the evidence you presented does not conclusively name my client as the guilty party."

"I believe I said that."

Kirk came dangerously close to letting out a bark of laughter at the Vulcan's expressionless scolding, but manage to restrain himself at the last moment.

"Commander Spock, when did you first meet Captain Kirk?"

Cogley shot up like a torpedo beside me. "Objection, relevance?"

"I am attempting to establish the character of the chief witness against my client."

The judge nods. "Overruled."

Spock spoke up as Cogley sat back down. "Our first encounter was approximately 2 years, 8 months, 3 weeks, 4 days, 9 hours, and 27 seconds ago."

For a moment, Spock was surrounded in a courtroom full of gaping fish.

"Very approximate, Commander. Tell me, what was the circumstance of this meeting?"

"The Captain was brought before a tribunal to account for his actions regarding the Kobayashi Maru test scenario at Starfleet Academy. I, as the designer of the program, was the accuser."

"What actions in particular?"

"He had reprogrammed the simulation to ensure a successful resolution."

Fasel nodded victoriously, smirking as if his point were being made for him. "So Captain Kirk cheated, simply for the sake of passing an academy examination, so isn't it logically possible that he decided to cheat again, creating an elaborate story to get rid of someone he doesn't like?"

Cogley was opening his mouth to shout an objection when Spock's reply got the word stuck in his throat.

"No."

Fasel was nodding his head, already moving onto his next point, when Spock's comment registered. "No? What do you mean no?"

Up went the Vulcan Eyebrow of Doom. "I am aware of only one meaning for this particular word in the vocabulary of Federation Standard. Indicating a negative response-"

"I know what no means! (Bet that sounded better in his head, Jim smirked to himself) What do you mean by saying no? You just stated that Kirk cheated to pass the examination. You yourself were his accuser on that occasion! If he has that kind of blatant disregard for rules-"

"Mr. Fasel, do you know the outcome of the hearing on the matter in question?"

"Yes, it was interrupted by the distress call from Vulcan and never redressed."

"Incorrect."

Jim heard the murmurs from the gallery behind him and winced. It had never occurred to him that nobody was aware of this particular episode. The maelstrom of events going on at the time had made it quite easily forgotten.

"There was a private meeting to conclude the hearing while the decision to give Captain Kirk command of the Enterprise was being considered."

"And what was the final outcome of this hearing?"

"The captain was given a commendation for original thinking."

The judge had to bang his gavel several times to restore order to the courtroom following this particular revelation.

"Pray tell, Commander, why would someone be given a commendation for cheating?"

"Because Captain Kirk's intention was not to pass the test. He was attempting to make a statement, one which the administration of the academy took quite seriously and one which would have come to light publicly prior to the end of the general academy assembly had I not unintentionally provoked the Captain's anger before he could finish making it.

Captain Kirk does not believe in the concept of what is referred to as a 'no-win' scenario, the very scenario the simulation was presenting. In the past when cadets have made these claims they were not taken seriously because their meaning was based on youthful naiveté indicating they were incapable of losing.

The Captain, on the other hand is and was at the time well aware that he was capable of losing. However he does not believe there is a situation where it would be impossible for him to win. To quote his words from the hearing in question, "Whether or not a person loses does not matter. The point is to try anything and everything. If you still lose anyway, that is life. But it does not mean you could not have won, merely that you did not. Your simulation teaches people to stop fighting when the odds are against them."

The simulation was also meant as an experience of fear. Once again, the Captain made a sound, logical argument as to the fallacy of that idea. (Jim almost passed out hearing Spock use the L word with regards to him).

The purpose was to allow cadets to experience fear in the face of certain death and maintain their control regardless. The captain pointed out that despite the cadets behaving as thought the simulation were real, the fear of imminent death is an emotional reaction that cannot be simulated. As such, the simulation was in fact dangerous as it provided a false sense of comfort in believing they had learned to face certain death. As a result, the academy board has taken the simulation out of its curriculum pending large-scale restructuring. Captain Kirk did not cheat the test, he mocked it in order to create a basis for his argument which would get the attention of the academy board."

Jim found himself smiling as he heard the reactions of the people behind him, particularly Nyota's. He knew that at the time she had not been happy with his conduct on the test, but the subject had never come up, so he figured it was simply behind them. It never occurred to him that she had never heard the reasoning he had presented to the board. His attention was diverted for a moment by an aide coming up to Cogley and whispering something in his ear, something which apparently had the lawyer rather surprised. But before Kirk could pursue it, Fasel spoke up with a question to Spock.

"Regardless of his reasons then, would you not say that Captain Kirk employed unorthodox, even underhanded tactics to accomplish his goal?"

"I would say he employed a form of public persuasion along a similar vein as civil disobedience, but I take your point."

"Then logically, is it not possible that he would employ similar tactics against someone whom he wished to discredit?"

"No, it is not."

Jim had never seen a lawyer look like he was about to throw a hissy-fit before. He found the spectacle quite amusing.

"Why not!?"

"Human beings follow certain types of behavioral patterns, what they call a personality. Captain Kirk employs deception to great skill strategically, however he also has an extremely firm conviction towards honoring the truth. He also takes the well-being of others very seriously, regardless of his personal opinions. There have been several cases during his tenure on the Enterprise where he has risked his well-being to aid someone he very openly disliked. It is simply not in his nature to be dishonest in an attempt to bring harm to another."

"In your opinion."

Only those who knew Spock well could tell that he was calling on his deep veneer of Vulcan discipline to keep from rolling his eyes.

"In my opinion."

Jim sat there all but gaping at his first officer. He and Spock were close friends now, but he'd never heard the Vulcan give such an upstanding appraisal of his character. Come to think of it, no one had. He really didn't think he'd ever be able to describe just what it meant to him.

Once Spock was excused, Fasel apparently having written him off as a lost cause, the judge turned to Cogley.

"Mr. Cogley, does the defense have any more witnesses?"

"One, your honor."

Fasel stood up. "Excuse me your honor, but there are no more names on the witness list provided by the prosecution."

Cogley nodded. "My apologies for that your honor, but I did not believe it feasible. I'd been attempting to contact this witness since I was given the case and been met with no response. I was only told just now that he'd come to the court willing to testify."

The judge nodded. "Understood. I'll give you some more time to prepare if you'd like Mr. Fasel, but barring any terms of being inadmissible that is reasonable. Call your witness.

Cogley's next words hit Kirk like a volley from Enterprise's phaser banks.

"The prosecution calls Samuel George Kirk."

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