Final Thoughts

It's been a week since Blackjack died on the steps of Sam Cogley. A week since everything went down. I couldn't sleep for the first three days. I wasn't sure I could type this story either. But nightmares do go away after a while. And I've still got a job to do.

The story of Blackjack is one of caution. The danger that comes with making a man larger than life. We as a society had decided that Thomas Ashcroft was untouchable. That because of his heroic actions, no one needed to take a second look.

In short, we let this happen. Blackjack faked the battle that made him a hero, conspiring with an equally corrupt Klingon General to elevate himself above reproach. Once he'd built his reputation, he pushed through reforms and worked himself into a position where he could come and go as he pleased, without supervision or accountability. And free from any prying eyes, Blackjack amassed an ungodly fortune and tried to buy his way into control of the Federation, for no other reason than greed.

Yes, there was no grand conspiracy to corrupt the Federation. There was no ultimate plan, no misguided act of alleged heroism. Blackjack was a greedy, ambitious bastard. And his greed and ambition poisoned the soul of the Federation, taking us to the very bleeding edge of a civil war that would have torn apart this union that has lasted five hundred years.

Much of the publicity surrounding the trial barely lasted a full news cycle. The Dominion War broke out a month later, and facing annihilation from a more conventional enemy, the Federation has almost forgotten what happened.

But we can't forget this, which is why I write this story today. We must do better. Starfleet, Fed-Sec, the Marines, and the Federation. We can't be afraid to question our heroes. We can't allow this to happen again.

Because if it does? If it does, even Mike Bagsley's rifle won't be enough to stop it.

Kirin Terev

FNN Senior Correspondent

The End.


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