I sit on a man's back, choking him and making him carry me, and yet assure myself and others that I am sorry for him and wish to lighten his load by all means possible … except by getting off his back. ― Leo Tolstoy, What Then Must We Do?

Ài – [愛 – love] (whether spoken by Xiùlán or Samantha, the meaning is 'Luv')]
Qīzi – [妻子 – wife]

• SYSTEMS ALLIANCE BASE, VANCOUVER, BC · EARTH, SOL SYSTEM •
⸰ Tuesday, 14 November 2220-CE ⸰

"All rise!" The booming voice of Master Sergeant Mathias Gisler, standing beside the judge's bench, brooked no argument. After pausing a few moments to allow everyone to comply with his order, he continued with, "Court is now in session … Major Geneviève Paquin presiding."

The major entered from the door behind her raised desk and, as she had done the previous morning, climbed the two hidden steps and stood behind it. After quickly looking over the folks in the courtroom, she hefted her gavel, struck the sounding block once and declared, "Court will come to order. Please, be seated," then sat down in her own chair.

Choosing one datapad from among the several lying on her desk, she glanced at the monitor showing Joesiar in the hearings cell downstairs before directing her focus to the nine officers seated along the side wall. "Ladies … Gentlemen; by virtue of the fact the defendant has pleaded guilty to all of the criminal charges outlined at the beginning of yesterday's session, the requirement that a jury hear evidence and render a verdict is now unnecessary. Therefore, I am prepared to render judgement in this case." She paused to make an entry in the datapad before continuing with, "To that end, it is with the gratitude of this court that you are hereby released from your service. Thank you. You may leave the court room." She waited as they silently stood from their chairs and, in similar fashion to their earlier single-file entry, quietly marched past the bench and exited the chamber.

As the side door closed behind the last juror, Major Paquin looked at each JAG attorney in turn and asked, "Gentlemen?" The command in the query was implied; Captain Ryan and Lieutenant Reid each rose from their chairs and stood behind their tables, attentively awaiting her verdict.

"In the matter of Jason Joesiar: to the charge of being a convicted felon in possession of a military grade long-rifle, I hereby rescind the pardon previously granted for the original life-with-no-parole prison sentence Mr Joesiar received in 2188 and order his immediate return to Arcturus Prison to continue serving that original sentence." Pausing to refer to the datapad in her hand, she then added, "Additionally, you are hereby ordered to forfeit 11,650 credits, the amount given to you by the Systems Alliance upon your premature release from prison."

"Objection, your honor." Lieutenant Reid took a step away from the table beside him. "Mr Joesiar has slightly less than 400 credits to his name. Surely, …"

"Overruled, Mr Reid." Paquin's reply was immediate, her tone brooking no further argument. "He will certainly have no need for credits inside a prison cell. His account will be emptied and closed, and whatever future earnings he is fortunate enough to acquire while incarcerated shall be applied to the debt he has incurred through his criminal activities."

She glanced around the courtroom as muted bits of conversation reached her ears, finally ending up with her blue-eyed gaze fixed on Admiral Yuán. The slightest hint of a smile—an expression that would have gone unnoticed had I not been intently watching Paquin from my position seated beside Xiùlán—softened her features momentarily before she continued.

"On the charge of conspiracy to murder an Alliance military officer, and for the pre-meditated attempt to assassinate Alliance Navy Admiral Yuán Xiùlán, I find the defendant, Jason Joesiar, having acted knowingly and intentionally, to be guilty as charged. Further, I am imposing a sentence of eighty-five years confinement for these two crimes … the defendant will begin serving this sentence in the recently completed psychiatric wing of Arcturus Prison, where he will be evaluated by a team of doctors to determine how best to treat his mental condition. If and when his mental illness is deemed to have been stabilized, he will be returned to the main prison facility to serve the remainder of this sentence, which is to run concurrently with his original life sentence. There being no provision in this judgement for pardon or parole, Mr Joesiar shall serve the entire sentence."

She looked up at one of the video monitors showing a now subdued Joesiar in his hearings cell downstairs and added, "On the Class 'A' misdemeanor charge of resisting arrest, I hereby sentence Mr Joesiar to one year in prison, to also be served concurrently with his original life sentence."

Picking up a different datapad, she skewered my Qīzi with her blue-eyed gaze and said, "Admiral Yuán." Xiùlán stood from her chair and faced the major. "As you are currently in possession of the M-98a Black Widow at the heart of these proceedings, I will be dispatching a pair of military police officers to your office at the conclusion of today's business, in order that the weapon can be retrieved for this court."

"Your honor, if I may?" Xiùlán asked. "What is to become of the weapon?"

"After a thorough inspection in our forensics lab, it will be disassembled and the parts will be melted down for scrap." Her expression softened slightly as she added, "I hope you will take solace from the fact it will never again be employed to take someone's life, ever."

Xiùlán nodded while replying, "Yes, your honor," then retook her seat. Leaning towards me as Paquin returned her attention to the courtroom, she whispered, "`Gāisǐ! Wǒ zhēn de hěn xiǎng bǎ tā guà zài qiáng shàng!" [「該死！ 我真的很想把它掛在牆上！– Damn! I really want to hang it on the wall!] over the sound of a gavel striking its sounding block and Paquin's proclamation of "This court stands adjourned."

As we all stood, I turned my head to whisper back into Xiùlán's ear, "I'll get you a photo of Joesiar's ugly face, staring out at you from behind the bars of his prison cell." At her reproachful look, I added, "Okay. I'll give you the rifle I confiscated after Savina Delarosa's attempt to kill RaeLee Park. It looks nearly the same as a Black Widow, but it's a helluva lot more sophisticated."

Shaking her head, she took my hand as we began to stroll out of the building. "It's not the same, but thank you, Sà mǐ. Your thoughtfulness is appreciated."

As we ambled into the sunshine, a Marine gunnery sergeant, accompanied by a corporal—both wearing white armbands branded with 'M·P' in large, black letters—approached us from the left. As they stopped to stand before us, the gunnery sergeant saluted Xiùlán and, upon receiving an answering salute, quietly said, "Admiral? We've been tasked with accompanying you to your quarters, so we may retrieve the M-98a recently used in the unsuccessful attempt on your life."

Xiùlán smiled with her response. "Of course, Gunny. Follow me and my Qīzi."

The gunnery sergeant's face took on a momentary questioning look at the unfamiliar term. Seeing that the admiral was holding my hand, his expression changed to a happy grin as they fell into step behind us. "Never heard that word before, Ma'am, but I'd guess you're referring to your companion."

"Samantha Traynor, Gunny. She's my wife … and the reason the assassin failed to plant a bullet in my chest with that rifle."

• SYSTEMS ALLIANCE BASE, VANCOUVER, BC · EARTH, SOL SYSTEM •
⸰ Thursday, 16 November 2220-CE ⸰

Alliance Navy Lieutenant Commander Forest Miller rose from his chair as Spectre Shepard strode into the conference room and came to a halt on the other side of the table. With his right hand extended in welcome, he said, "Spectre Shepard. I never imagined I would ever be in the same room with you." As he clasped her hand in greeting, he continued, "It is an honor to meet you, Ma'am."

Grinning as she remarked, "While I regret that recent events have forced us together in order to deal with this business, it is my distinct pleasure to meet you today, Commander Miller."

Miller's features clouded slightly at being reminded of the unpleasant reason for this meeting; releasing her hand, he motioned for her to sit in the chair across from his own. As she sat down, he retook his own chair while commenting, "Difficult to wrap my head around the amount of greed that compels people to betray positions of trust. This man … Osoba? His son died defending the citizens of Benning during an attack by Cerberus. I would think he would want to honor his boy's sacrifice by working for the betterment of humanity. Instead, he chose to use his position, first as an ambassador, then as a galactic counselor, to sell favors."

Shepard shook her head minutely as she thought back to the war. "Those were desperate times. I was leading a ground team on Benning during that attack; we had our hands full, keeping those Cerberus thugs from kidnapping the colonists." She paused for several moments before concluding, "As we were bugging out, I actually managed to retrieve a set of dog tags belonging to Bilal Osoba."

"I would imagine the ambassador was grateful for that," Miller commented. "At least he had some closure … not something many people had during the war."

"Agreed." Shepard smirked as she observed, "And now, he's all alone down in the sub-basement. Joesiar was removed from the cell next to Osoba's right after lunch yesterday. A pair of MPs added him to the freight supply run to Arcturus Station; he most likely arrived in time to enjoy dinner in his old prison cell." She cocked her head slightly as she added, "General Bradley Joesiar's underhanded advocacy for his nephew is the main reason Osoba is sitting behind bars down there."

At that, Miller observed, "Osoba has no one to blame for his situation but himself," then added, "Proving his guilt will probably take a lot more time; having a certified video of the event would be a huge plus," Miller grumped. "We'll have to be exceedingly thorough to get a conviction. It'll all come down to the financial records and electronic communications between Osoba and the general."

"Don't worry about it, Commander. I have several very good friends … all are beyond expert at ferreting information out of the computers the galaxy depends on for its financial records. It won't be long before you'll have everything needed to get a conviction … and once you do, Osoba will most likely be sitting in a cell right next to the cretin responsible for his indefensible position." Seeing the doubt in Miller's expression, Shepard added, "Since Spectres aren't required to reveal their sources in order to obtain a criminal conviction, I'll be happy to present the proof for you, Commander. Also, I believe most everything we're able to bring to light regarding former councilor Osoba will be relevant in convicting General Joesiar of his own underhanded influence buying."

• SYSTEMS ALLIANCE BASE, VANCOUVER, BC · EARTH, SOL SYSTEM •
⸰ Monday, 25 December 2220-CE ⸰

I was awakened by the soft, nearly inaudible trilling of my omnitool, alerting me to an incoming message. What tha? … It's not even 0645! … And it's Christmas morning!

I rubbed the sleep from my eyes best I could before opening the text. Griff and Oriana had each wished me a Merry Christmas!, followed by detailed instructions from Buchanan, directing me to take a look outside for a very special gift … for myself and Xiùlán … specifically, across the parade grounds, through the main gate, across the adjacent road, then to the abandoned office building in the otherwise large but empty lot on the far side of that road.

I really didn't wish to get dressed before performing my daily exercises and taking my morning shower, so I pulled on my short, silk robe and quietly left our bedroom without waking Xiùlán. Besides sharing her on-base apartment, one of the many advantages of being an admiral's wife was access to the small, secure communications cubicle between our bedroom and the lounge. I sat at the control console and powered on the large video monitor that displayed the different views available from the eleven vid-cams monitoring the grounds around the central building; one of the eleven was positioned to view the parade grounds, and could be zoomed in for a tight view of the main gate and the area beyond, including across the road to the broken shell of the structure that had sheltered a potential assassin, on two different occasions, several decades apart,.

Using the camera's remote control, I pushed-in to the empty lot and tightened the focus on the image. The only thing visible in the dim light of this early winter morning was a few tendrils of smoke, mixed with some wisps of water vapor, swirling around and rising from what appeared to be a huge, freshly-formed crater, where the empty shell of a large office building had been sitting abandoned since the conclusion of the war. I rubbed my eyes in near disbelief. What the bloody 'ell? How could Buchanan have known about this?

I decided to view the camera's recorded video in order to see exactly when this crater—its appearance suspiciously similar to the many I had seen decades ago during the war—had been created. It took only a few moments for me to discover that the building, along with a large section of the paved surface around it, had been vaporized from directly above, vanishing nearly instantly from the effects of an extremely powerful, red-tinged beam of energy, the source of which was above the camera's field of view. That's gotta be from a Reaper's prime weapon!

Having run the recorded video back a few hours, I quickly discovered the exact instant the darkness of night had been turned into a blinding, white-hot vision from hell. Inspecting the time code on the recorded video confirmed the event had taken place at 0113. After releasing the camera controls, I took a screen-grab shot of the actual, real-time image, then rose from my chair to leave the cubicle so I could speak with Xiùlán … before she heard about this from anyone else.

A quick peek in our bedroom revealed an empty bed, so I returned through the passageway, traversed the lounge and entered the kitchen to hear a happy, "Good morning, Sà mi, and Merry Christmas! You're up and about awfully early. Yīqiè dōu hǎo?" [一切都好？– Is everything okay?] She had fixed herself a pot of tea and, after filling her own mug, she filled a mug with coffee for me. "You haven't found trouble on base already, have you?"

I raised an eyebrow at her second question, then took a sip from the mug she handed me before answering, "Merry Christmas yourself, darling." I mentally forwarded Buchanan's and Oriana's message from earlier while adding, "You may want to sit down, Ai." I sent the frame-capture from the camera showing the new crater across the road from the main gates. Her eyes went wide as she studied the scene. Looking back up at me, she asked, "Zhè shì mǒu zhǒng wánxiào ma, Sà mi? [這是某種玩笑嗎？ - Is this some sort of joke, Sà mǐ ?]

"No joke, Darling. The day before the ceremony, Buchanan told me he was going to have a crew come in and destroy that building, before it could be used in another attempt to cause someone's death." I shook my head, took another sip from my mug, and continued. "I looked at the archived video from …" I pointed to the image I'd sent to her omnitool "… that camera, Ai. It appears a Repository or two may now be in the Shadow Broker's pockets. An energy beam—I feel certain it came from a Sovereign-class Repository—appeared from directly overhead at exactly 0113, incinerated the ground in a precise oval for four or five seconds, then vanished … along with that building, and several cubic meters of the dirt on which it had been built."

Xiùlán sat quietly for several minutes while sipping tea from her mug. Finally glancing up at me, she asked, "Is there any more to this story, Ai?" At my baffled expression, she added, "I know Buchanan, Sà mǐ. I would bet even money he offered to do more than merely destroy that structure."

"When we talked, he knew that Jay-Jay was already in a position to take a shot at General Park, or you, Xiùlán. He offered to have Dokken's team pre-emptively take the xiǎo tǔ dài [小土袋 - small soil (literally, little dirt) bag] out; told me you'd never know they were involved." Her shocked expression of disbelief was all I needed to see; delighted I had chosen correctly, I added, "I told him 'No!' my darling. Even if you hadn't actually known, you'd have had your suspicions, and I would have known. Trying to keep that knowledge from you would have eaten me up inside."

"Thank you, Sà mǐ, for respecting my wishes on this matter," she grinned. She took another sip of tea from her mug, then set it on the table and sighed as she refilled it. "Have you sent an inquiry to Irin, or Žiuk'Durmah, concerning that building's destruction?"

With an answering grin, I shook my head slightly. "I'll ask her now." I mentally composed and sent a short text message inquiry to Iringù-Eßizkur, with a copy to Žiuk'Durmah; rather than respond with a text, Irin responded almost immediately by speaking through my omnitool.

»As Buchanan-Griffin still possessed my contact protocols, he requested my aid in accomplishing a task he said he had already spoken about with you.« Her tone of voice suggested a touch of embarrassment. »In order to insure that only that one structure was destroyed, I requested that Žiuk'Durmah perform the operation, while I provided targeting guidance from close-by.«

I mentally noted her seemingly purposeful omission of Griff's Shadow Broker title as I started to ask why she had involved Žiuk'Durmah, when his 'voice' rolled through my omnitool. »Friend-Samantha. Iringù-Eßizkur requested my assistance in carrying out Buchanan-Griffin's wishes. My prime weapon is more powerful, and I can achieve pinpoint accuracy, from a greater distance. Our intention, in agreement with the goal of Buchanan-Griffin, is to forestall any future attempt, by anyone, to exploit the position of the building in an attempt to target or kill personnel inside-entering-leaving your homebase … Yuán-Admiral's homebase.«

Irin concluded their joint explanation by admitting, »Buchanan-Griffin was adamant that you remain unaware of our intentions. He stated he had already warned you of this on the day prior to the ceremony on the open parade grounds, in which Yuán-Admiral was seriously injured.«

I smiled at Xiùlán. "Griff did warn me, darling. I just never expected the crew he intended to employ would be a pair of former Reapers, whose oft-stated goals are to protect me and the people important to me. Personally, I have no problem with that building being gone. Do you?"

She responded with a heavy sigh, then shook her head while admitting, "No, I don't have a problem with it, but … I bet the owners will be plenty unhappy with their new crater."

I chuckled at that. "I'd tell them they can take a flying leap … right into their new hole-in-the-ground, right before the city demands they fill it in." I laughed as I added, "There's an old aphorism I believe fits this situation extremely well, my darling Xiùlán: it's better to seek forgiveness afterwards than to ask for permission before."

• INSIDE IRINGÙ-EẞIZKUR, AT LARGE · WIDOW SYSTEM, SERPENT NEBULA •
⸰ Thursday, 03 January 2222-CE ⸰
⸰ Fourteen months after Osoba's removal from the Council ⸰

It had taken the entire previous year for the Shadow Broker to get at all of Dominic Osoba's financial records, along with his official and personal correspondence; by the time I was sure the Broker—that is, Griffin Buchanan, Oriana Lawson, and Chinami'Taelas—and I had compiled all the data in a form that would be easy enough for the average person to understand, it was a week before Christmas, 2221. I asked Spectre Shepard to inform the JAG officer in charge of prosecuting Osoba that it might be best to begin the trial the first week of January. Commander Miller had agreed and arranged for everything to begin on the third day of the month, inside the large assembly hall previously set up as a court room for Joesiar's trial.

Spectre Shepard had joined me inside Iringù-Eßizkur for the flight from Thessia so I could brief her on the evidence we'd uncovered … evidence that would condemn Osoba to spend the next fifty or sixty years, maybe more, in prison. "This is some interesting reading, Sammy," Rachaél said, as she rose from the cushy chair to stretch her arms and legs.

With a chuckle, I offered, "Damned boring, is what you mean. Facts and figures so dry, they're perfect for putting one to sleep."

"Well, yeah," came the cheeky reply. "Still, all the numbers line up, quite neatly. There's no doubt in my mind that Osoba used his position of authority for illicit financial gain." In a voice that sounded rather sad, she added, "Shows what I know. I actually thought the man had some integrity … certainly more so than Udina." She waved a hand at the datapads on the side table as she scoffed, "These records prove he began taking bribes from Joesiar's uncle before he became a counselor."

"General Brad was certainly not the least of Osoba's illicit employers … just the most persistent." Shaking my head, I added, "The general is not the only high-ranking Alliance officer that has used his considerable influence to bend outcomes his way, Rachaél. He's just the most single-minded of the ones in which I've been involved in taking down." I looked up at the chrono display in one corner of the large monitor displaying the view in front of Irin. "Getting kinda late … it'll be dark in Vancouver by the time we get there. Want me to set you down at the Presidium, or should we go on to Earth? I'll contact Xiùlán … have her assign guest quarters for you."

"Let's head for Vancouver, Sammy. I'd like to be on the ground there when the sun comes up. We can have breakfast and chat, before the trial begins."

Before I could respond, Iringù-Eßizkur said, »Making for the Relay, Shepard-Spectre.«

I grinned in response as Rachaél looked at me questioningly. "What? She's always aware of what's going on, especially inside her structure. I'll admit, it takes some getting used to, but after all these years of riding round and living inside her, I don't give it a second thought."

• SYSTEMS ALLIANCE BASE, VANCOUVER, BC · EARTH, SOL SYSTEM •
⸰ Friday, 04 January 2222-CE ⸰

Dominic Osoba had entered the courtroom yesterday morning, looking as if he owned the city and everyone residing there; upon walking in this morning, he appeared to have shrunk substantially in stature, as if the testimony presented by the prosecution during the previous day, having laid bare the misdeeds he had carried out over the previous three decades, had physically deflated him.

What had damned him beyond all hope of reprieve was the financial proof—presented over a three-hour period by Spectre Rachaél Shepard—of the man's insatiable greed for credits. In addition to the multiple charges of bribery, he was also being held to account as an accomplice in the attempted murder of Admiral Yuán Xiùlán, the recently assigned commandant of the Vancouver base … this, due to his commutation of Jason Joesiar's 'Life-Without-Parole' prison sentence. The prosecuting attorney had gone on to describe Joesiar's acquisition—with the financial backing by his uncle—of a military grade, M-98a Black Widow rifle; after pointing out that conditions of his pardon from prison prohibited him from possessing that particular weapon, he argued that Joesiar's premeditated attempt at ending the admiral's life—for which he had been tried and convicted just fourteen months ago—would not have been possible had he not been set free by the former councilor.

The final nail in the man's political coffin had occurred just this afternoon, when his JAG appointed defense attorney, a young Navy ensign named Kaylee Hamilton, had attempted to compel Shepard into providing the sources for the financial records she had presented as proof of Osoba's greed.

Rachaél had remained calm as she explained, "Ensign Hamilton, need I remind you that, as a Council Spectre, I am not required to reveal my sources, ever. I have no bias, either for or against the former councilor. I was asked to present the financial facts concerning Mr Osoba's actions over the past three decades; I have done exactly that. Unfortunately for him, the trail of credits ends in his personal bank accounts."

"But Spectre, surely there must be …"

Rachaél raised a hand to cut the Ensign off. "Ms Hamilton, if a Spectre from any other race had presented the same facts and figures I just spent over three hours detailing, I don't believe you would be questioning the legitimacy of the data." Shepard raised an eyebrow as she cocked her head. "The forensic accountants employed for this task are the absolute best of the best, Ms Hamilton." With a glance at Commander Miller, she concluded, "The thoroughness of their investigations is the primary reason we were forced to delay this hearing for over a year."

Hamilton realized she had pushed about as far as she dared. Personally, she wasn't bothered that Osoba, whom she had been assigned to defend against the charges, would probably wind up spending a great deal of time—possibly the rest of his life—confined to a small cell in Arcturus Prison. There were other, more senior lawyers in her JAG office; all of them recognized it as a loser case when it was presented for them to choose a defense attorney. Kaylee, as the least senior member of the group, had the misfortune of having drawn the proverbially short straw.

The judge was saying something. "Sir? I'm sorry. Please repeat what you said." Dammit, Kaylee! Pull it together!

The JAG attorney presiding over this trial, who just happened to be Kaylee's mentor, smiled as he speared the young ensign with his eyes and said, "Does the defense have anything further to add today? If not, I propose we recess until Monday morning … say, 0845."

"Nothing further, Your Honor."

"Very good." With a bang of the gavel, he announced, "Court is in recess until 0845 Monday."

• SYSTEMS ALLIANCE BASE, VANCOUVER, BC · EARTH, SOL SYSTEM •
⸰ Monday, 07 January 2222-CE ⸰

After spending a delightful weekend enjoying the company of my Qīzi—at least, when she could legitimately pull herself away from her official duties—I strolled into the courtroom and took a seat, nearest the exit in the back row. I fully expected the jury would rule in favor of the prosecution's case against former Councilor Osoba. The only thing left to discover would be the length of his prison term and how many credits he would have to forfeit in compensation for his thirty-plus years of selling favors.

Just before the bailiff announced that court was back in session by telling everyone to rise, Xiùlán quietly entered and, after waiting for the judge to gavel the assembly to order, sat in the empty chair beside me. After a few moments, she leaned towards me and whispered, "Ànjiàn hěn kuài jiù huì tíjiāo péishěn tuán shěnlǐ. Nǐ rènwéi tāmen huì zuò chū shénme juédìng?" [案件很快就會提交陪審團審理。你認為他們會做出什麼決定？ – The case will go before the jury soon. What do you think they will decide?]

A tiny smile accompanied my whispered reply. "Ào suǒ bā shì yītiáo shé, qīn'ài de. Tā xūyào sǐ zài jiānyù lǐ, hé qiáo xīyǎ yīqǐ sǐ!" [奧索巴是一條蛇，親愛的。他需要死在監獄裡，和喬西亞一起死！ – Osoba is a snake, dear. He needs to die in jail, with Joesiar!] I refocused my attention on the judge and the attorneys; with my mouth next to my wife's ear, I added, "Hard to say how they'll decide, but I'm totally convinced he's every bit as guilty of attempted murder as the miserable little troll he turned loose, Xiùlán." I grasped her hand. "I wasn't aware of all the other crimes he's been accused of committing, but, it does make sense, in a perverted sort of way. No reason for him to place any limits on his greed. The longer he got away with it, the more at ease he became."

Xiùlán moved her head in order to whisper back in my ear, saying, "He's certainly a lot wealthier than should be possible on a councilor's stipend. I hope the judge orders the confiscation of a significant portion of that fortune."

I grinned as I whispered back, "He needs to break the bastard, Xiùlán. Send a message to others thinking to emulate the man." My grin lessened as I unobtrusively observed, "It'll probably be a very long time before humanity has another representative on the council, Ai. We were ill-served by Udina during the early stages of the war, and Osoba followed right along in his footsteps."

Xiùlán squeezed my thigh to indicate our attention needed to be focused at the front of the chamber; Osoba was led into the courtroom and seated beside his JAG advocate, Ensign Kaylee Hamilton, who leaned in to whisper in his ear for a few moments. He nodded, then sat back to await the verdict.

The jurors for this tribunal consisted of four men and three women; all were officers in either the Navy or Marines. None of them had appeared to harbor any sympathy for the former councilor during the trial; their expressions this morning were just as ominous.

The judge asked prosecuting attorney Lieutenant Commander Forest Miller to share his point of view with the jury. He stood from his chair, approached the jurors and slowly paced back and forth in front of them as he summed up the facts of this case. In less than fifteen minutes, he concluded his summation by asking the panel to find Osoba guilty of accepting bribes—in the form of credits and other favors from various sources—for a period exceeding thirty years.

The judge then asked Ensign Hamilton to present the jurors with a summary of her defense of Osoba's actions; it took her just over ten minutes to present her arguments that Osoba had only ever meant to assist his fellow humans in their dealings with the galaxy's other races, and his one mistake in character judgement—evidenced by his commutation of Jason Joesiar's lifetime prison sentence—shouldn't negate a career spent in service to humanity.

After Hamilton had retaken her seat, Trial Judge Marine Captain Patrick McCrae looked to the panel of officers serving as jurors for this trial; after instructing them to carefully consider all the facts of the case, he charged them with choosing a verdict of guilty or not, then recessed the court.

• SYSTEMS ALLIANCE BASE, VANCOUVER, BC · EARTH, SOL SYSTEM •
⸰ Friday, 11 January 2222-CE ⸰

The officers empaneled as jurors for Dominic Osoba's criminal trial had taken nearly the entire week to reach a verdict. I was holding my breath as the nine men and women solemnly filed into the chamber and stopped to stand in front of their chairs. The bailiff announced that court was back in session as Captain Patrick McCrae entered, ascended to his desk, and gaveled the hearing to order. After a few moments and once everyone was seated, he speared the jury foreperson with a pair of slate-grey eyes and asked, "In the matter of Systems Alliance verses Dominic Osoba, has the jury reached a verdict?"

Navy Lieutenant Bryson MacDonald stood as he replied, "We have, your honor." He remained standing as the bailiff approached; he handed a folded slip of paper to the man, then retook his seat as the paper was handed to Captain McCrae, who slowly unfolded it and looked at the contents.

Returning his attention to Lieutenant MacDonald, McCrae queried, "Is this decision unanimous?" After being assured that all nine jurors had reached the same conclusion, he looked at each of the attorneys before him, who promptly stood. Osoba reluctantly stood as well, defiantly staring at the judge as he awaited McCrae's announcement of the decision.

"In the matter of Systems Alliance versus Dominic Osoba, this court finds you guilty as charged; you shall be returned to this chamber Monday morning for sentencing." The sharp report of the gavel striking its sounding block sounded like a gunshot in the deathly quiet. "Court is adjourned."

• SYSTEMS ALLIANCE BASE, VANCOUVER, BC · EARTH, SOL SYSTEM •
⸰ Monday, 14 January 2222-CE · 0855 ⸰

Escorted by Xiùlán, I had taken a seat at the back of the courtroom in order to learn just what the Alliance Judiciary would announce as punishment for Dominic Osoba's influence peddling over the course of three-plus decades. The disgraced former councilor was led into the chamber from a door at the front, just to the right of the raised desk behind which the judge would be sitting.

The muted conversations around us gradually fell into silence as the large, wall-mounted chrono's display incremented the seconds and minutes. Upon reaching 0859:30, the bailiff heaved himself up from his chair and, accompanied by the entrance of JAG lawyer and judge Patrick McCrae, loudly ordered, "All rise!" After a brief pause, he continued, "This court is now in session … Captain Patrick McCrae presiding."

The captain ascended the hidden risers behind the massive desk, looked out over the assembly for a few moments, then gaveled the session to order and took his seat. After momentarily referring to the datapad he had brought in with him, he directed his attention to Osoba and his defense attorney. "Ensign Hamilton?" The woman placed a hand on Osoba's shoulder as she rose from her chair, prompting Osoba to do the same.

McCrae's eyes bored into the former councilor's as he proclaimed, "Dominic Osoba, I hereby sentence you to be imprisoned for a period of eighty-five years, without the possibility of pardon or parole. Additionally, I am imposing a fine of 1,875,000 credits, to be collected immediately upon this court's adjournment."

If I had to guess, based on the way he hung his head and the sudden slump of his shoulders, I expected the amount of the penalty would relieve him of most of his ill-gotten wealth. It was a fortune illegally gained by accepting a multitude of bribes and granting numerous favors during the course of a three-plus decade career as first, an ambassador, then as a counselor representing human interests on the galactic stage. With a quiet chuckle, I thought, The only interests he ever thought about were his own. My nearly soundless amusement caused Xiùlán to grab my hand and squeeze it … a silent but tactile admonishment to remain quiet.

Kaylee Hamilton, after conferring with Osoba for a few moments, addressed the judge. "Begging your pardon, Sir. We intend to appeal this decision, as my client believes the duration of his proposed incarceration is excessive, as is the monetary penalty."

Captain McCrae responded immediately: "That is your client's right, Counselor, but Mr Osoba shall remain in custody while your appeal plays out. If he wishes to be released on bail, he must have a tracker chip implanted, and he must remit the monetary judgement against him—in its entirety—as collateral to this court."

Hamilton conferred with Osoba for less than a minute; addressing the judge, she announced, "My client would prefer to remain free during the appeal and agrees to the court's stipulations."

McCrae responded. "It is so ordered. Bailiff, accompany Mr Osoba and Ensign Hamilton to the med-clinic for the procedure, after he transfers the required amount of credits into the holding account. Oh, and be sure he's issued a receipt for the deposit." He banged his gavel once and said, "Court is adjourned."