Chapter 814

SENATOR JAMESON'S OFFICE

FEDERATION CAPITAL

PARIS, EARTH

Eli Gold walked into the office exhausted. It felt like a lifetime's worth of guilt was being carried. It felt like one of those old college frat parties where everyone does stupid games and you are carrying your buddy on your back somewhere. Only this isn't a game, it's life. And that buddy on your back is three hundred pounds and every step is exhausting. If he could only drop this burden. But he can't, he's been adding to it his whole life. His career as Senator Jameson's Chief of Staff has not only added to the burden, it has multiplied it.

Jameson was in another particularly foul mood. The hearings weren't going the way he wanted them to go, largely due to Jameson's own doing, but also to this God of Jacobs protecting him. Gold could see the God of Jacobs work, as he now referred to this force. Jameson saw Gold and yelled, "Get in here Eli!"

Gold walked in with a pad. He quietly sat down across from Jameson's desk. Jameson handed over a pad and said, "This is what I've had planned for the Organian mission, now we had to make a couple of changes…."

Gold glanced at it and said flatly, "We shouldn't touch this with a ten foot pole."

Jameson snapped, "Why not?!"

Gold sat the pad down, "Because the committee already has hashed this out just after the Wisconsin finished that mission." Jameson was non-plussed. Gold continued, "In fact, if you press this, the Intelligence Committee and FID may up you to their high priority because of the word error you made questioning Admiral Nogura."

"What questioning?"

"You accidentally let it be known that we had a back door to the Wisconsin's files. Nogura caught you in a trap, even asked you a clarifying answer, and you squirmed your way out of it."

Jameson recalled, along with the panic he felt. That was so unusual for him. Normally when something like this popped up, he actually felt exhilaration at the challenge of skating by. Not this time. Still, nothing was going to deter him. "I want to press Jacobs on his violating the Organian treaty."

Gold was exhausted from the struggle from the last few days. He was exhausted with constantly being apologetic for Jameson. He was exhausted with dealing with this moron and his bull-headed ideas. Many words came to Gold's mind over Jameson. Moron most recently. Idiot. Stupid. Stubborn. Proud. Most of those words were ones Gold's parents didn't like him using describing people, but they describe Jameson well, but not completely. Corrupt needed to be added. Yes, Jameson was definitely corrupt, and Gold was Jameson's legman. It felt like a backpack of bricks. One more brick on Gold's back.

"Sir, if you open this up, Senator April and the opposition will be able to pry into things we don't want discussed."

"Speaking of our back door, what ever happened to our back door into Starfleet?"

Gold sighed under the proverbial weight of the bricks in his backpack. This one was particularly heavy. "Gibe was our man, he disappeared about this time and reappeared on the other side of the world, naked and severely brain damaged. With him gone along with Starfleet reverting to the previous OS in starships, we lost the ability to read practically in real time Starfleet Operations."

"We should have our own method of getting into Starfleet's mail. How else can I make sure they are doing what we want them to do?"

Gold sighed, mentally shifting bricks in his backpack. Jameson asked, "When are those CEO's arriving that we subpoenaed?"

Gold said, "Later on today."

CAPTAIN'S QUARTERS

USS WISCONSIN

Jacobs had just finished getting dressed for the day. He was reading his Bible for the day when the intercom whistled. Jacobs pushed the comm button. "Jacobs."

"Leonaidas, sir. How are you doing?"

Jacobs answered, "I'm doing fine. Getting tired of this whole mess."

"Are you worried?"

Jacobs answered honestly, "Yes."

"So am I."

"Can you be at my quarters in five? Let's meet with Ian before we transport down."

"Gotcha boss." And the line went dead.

Jacobs pushed the comm button again. "Jacobs to Octavian."

"Octavian here. What can I do for you?"

"Quick prayer session. Can you come here and pray with Leo and I?"

"Anytime."

"Thanks, come right over when you can."

"Octavian out."

Jacobs sat back and started thinking. He was worried. It was not debilitating; it was just there. And it wouldn't go away. The door chimed, Jacobs said, "Come in." And stood up.

The door opened; Octavian walked in followed by Leonaidas. "What's up sir?"

"Leo asked me earlier if I was worried. Bottom line is yes."

Octavian nodded, "It's understandable. With all that is going on, I'd be surprised if you weren't." Octavian looked at his friend and said, "That's not all, is it?"

Jacobs looked at his two friends. "No, it's not. I've never liked hearings; they are more like investigations. That's not right either. We are fighting evil here; Jameson has no intention of seeking the truth."

Leonaidas asked, "Who are you worried for? Yourself or others?"

Jacobs shrugged. "Both. Of course, I'm worried about how this is going to affect me, but then I'm also worried that what I've done may affect Starfleet, and others. You guys as well. Today is probably going to be about Organia. Leo, you are probably going to face some heat over that."

Leonaidas smiled. "I'd rather be judged on doing too much than too little."

Jacobs smiled. "That's why I picked you for the First Officer position. But you get my point."

Octavian nodded. "You've heard me talk before about offloading burdens to Christ. It's easy to talk, harder to do. At some point you must give it completely to God, and trust what he is going to do. You know that God is for you, not against you…"

"Yes, but.."

Octavian held his hand. "Psalm 118:6-7 The LORD is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me? The LORD is on my side as my helper; I shall look in triumph on those who hate me."

Jacobs said, "And Jameson definitely hates me."

Leonaidas added, "Us."

Jacobs chuckled. "Us. It's just that he has the whole committee, politics, and everything wrapped around his finger."

Octavian shook his head. "You are forgetting who is really in control. I guarantee he has forgotten, or rather never has known. Romans 8:31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? My advice is not to worry. We have already won. It just has not been revealed yet."

Jacobs looked at the clock. "Right. We better be moving."

Octavian nodded, "Let's pray." All bowed their heads. "Dear Heavenly Father. Josh is having an attack of the worries, while it is understandable, we know that you do not want him to worry. I ask you please to remove and defeat this spirit of worry on him, to fill him with the Holy Spirit, and to accept the confidence that you have this all in your hands."

Jacobs nodded. "And Lord, please forgive me of my lack of faith. Please strengthen me."

Leonaidas finished. "Jesus, Lord, I ask you to bless the proceedings. Please strengthen Josh for this time. You've made him for this time, so please, Lord fill him up so everybody sees you and not him. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Jacobs nodded, "Thank you guys."

Leonaidas said, "We better get going. I'll get a demerit on my record if I don't get the Captain to the hearing on time." The three chuckled and went out the door.

TRANSPORTER ROOM

USS WISCONSIN

The three walked into the room, seeing Chief Kaylee and Commander Carter at the console. On the pad were Lt Cdr Jareau, and Commander Bauer. The three walked up to the pad, "Good morning, Alan. Are you enjoying being in charge of the ship?"

"As much as I can be in spacedock. The only one enjoying the time is Dom." Carter said smiling.

Jacobs nodded. "I'm glad someone is enjoying this period of time."

Carter added, "Well, young Mr. Hornblower is enjoying the time in the center seat."

Jacobs laughed. "That's good. Is he on duty today?"

"No sir, Lt Maya is at Conn now." Carter's smile thinned a little bit. "Captain, we're all behind you. Go get them sir."

Jacobs smiled and nodded, "Very well, energize."

SENATE HEARING ROOM

FEDERATION CAPITAL

PARIS, EARTH

There was low level talk in the room. Jacobs looked around, and mentioned to Cogley, "Leo wanted to make sure I showed up on time. Glad to see that it makes a difference."

Cogley looked back at Jacobs and smirked, "If you are late, Josh, that's contempt. If the Chairman is late, that's power. Don't sweat it. Ultimately, it makes him look bad. Remember these proceedings are being broadcast live." Jameson walked in and hurriedly sat down.

"I want to start off with the Wisconsin's mission starting on 7556."

Senator April said, "Before we get to that, there are a couple of items on their mission to Organia. As I have time to use, we should go there."

Jameson waived his hand. Senator April started, "I think what happened on Organia should be discussed briefly in this forum, as it does have an impact in later events. Admiral Nogura, can you give us a brief synopsis of what the major events were?"

Admiral Nogura nodded. "Yes, Senator. The Wisconsin was tasked to escort the T'Pal to Organia for a scheduled, mediated conference with the Klingon Empire. The Wisconsin waited at the assigned waypoint outside the system while the T'Pal continued inbound to Organian orbit. While the T'Pal was on the backside of Organia, a Black Fleet vessel decloaked and blew up the Klingon ambassadorial vessel. The explosion overloaded the T'Pal's shields, scrammed the warp core, and destroyed the ship. When the debris came within sensor range, the Wisconsin warped in and did a quick rescue mission. Ambassador Nucatola was rescued and enough evidence was collected for us to figure out what happened."

"There was the concern of why there were no apparent Organians. The Wisconsin and the Klingon escort beamed down to the planet and figured out that they were killed off. Presumably they were killed by a race of 'pinwheel' aliens that came through an interdimensional hole nearby Organia. All information was shared with the Klingons. The Black Fleet ship deception to get a conflict between the Wisconsin and the Tad ultimately failed, but the Tad was destroyed."

Senator April looked at Ambassador Gorkon. "What is the position of the Klingon Empire on this?"

Gorkon smiled warmly, "It was debated in High Council. The High Council accepted Starfleet's evidence of what happened and officially rejects the Black Fleet."

Nogura said, "The loss of the Organians led to the Klingons rejecting the Organian treaty. Ultimately, it led to the battle of Starbase 5."

Jameson muttered snidely, "Jacobs probably killed the Organians."

Captain Jackson laughed a couple of times, "You know, Senator, if you really believed that, I'd be careful antagonizing the person responsible for single-handedly destroying the all-powerful Organians."

Jameson snapped, "Captain Jackson, the Organians…."

Jackson said still with a smile, "Are not all-powerful? Then Starfleet's position was correct after all? If you really believed that, you would be in fear of Jacobs, but you can't stop trying to destroy the man! I'm just trying to help you realize your inconsistencies."

There was a mild chuckle through the gallery. Jameson gaveled order. "Fine. Captain Jacobs, where were you on Stardate 7918?"

Jacobs shifted in his seat. "That is classified." Jacobs noticed the Klingons were listening intently. He decided to take the simple route and simply leave the answer as such.

Jameson picked up the Klingons attentiveness. "That brings up other questions. This friendship you have with Kor and Kang. How can you possibly be friends with Kor, the man that tried to kill you?"

Jacobs was surprised at the question. "I don't understand your question."

"Isn't it true that Kor was torturing you to find out the position of the station you visited on Stardate 7918?" Jameson pressed.

Jacobs calmly replied. "Senator, your question has many assumptions laced in it. First, I cannot answer as to where I was on Stardate 7918, that is classified. You are grouping way too many items together for me to adequately answer the question."

"Are you trying to dodge my question?"

Jacobs shook his head, "No, in fact I'll rephrase so I can answer."

"Just answer my question, Captain."

Jacobs said, "Kor did torture me to find the position of a secret base. That was in the report and the data that Kor gave us at the end."

Senator Bim Freshligm asked, "I thought you said Kor tortured you. I admit to scanning that report. I can't remember the specifics."

Jacobs nodded and started, "To roughly explain…"

Jameson interrupted, "You've already made the statement in the report!"

Bim Freshligm said, "I want to know. I cannot remember the specifics. Also, there were hours of video to watch of this mind sifter torture."

Admiral Nogura said, "Senators, to be clear. The only thing that is classified is where Captain Jacobs was on Stardate 7918. Nothing else is classified. The Klingons already know what they were torturing Captain Jacobs about."

Jacobs looked at the Klingons. Ambassador Gorkon was inquisitive. Kang was impassive as always. Kor looked amused. Kor raised his eyebrows as if enjoying a joke. Jacobs looked back at the committee, "Senators, Kor was using the mind sifter to get information. To answer the first question, how we became friends literally was an act of God."

Jameson let out a very audible exasperated sigh. Jacobs ignored it and continued. "That will require a bit of explaining, to answer Senator Jameson."

Jameson said, "I do not like how close you are to the Klingons, Captain. I really do not want to hear how you became friends."

Jacobs said, "I'm not sure what you information you require. You just asked me how Kor and I became friends, now you say you are not interested. Which is it, Senator?"

Jameson yelled, "This is my forum, Jacobs! I do not like how a Starfleet Captain has become chummy with the Klingons. How do I know that you are not colluding with the Klingons?"

Jacobs calmly replied, "I just fought a battle with the Klingons."

There was a stir in gallery. Jacobs sat silently waiting for Jameson. Jameson finally said, "I'm glad you mentioned battle. I want to address the Fifth fleet attacking the Klingons across the Klingon Border."

Senator April asked amusingly, "Is the matter closed then concerning Jacobs' friendship with Klingons?"

Jameson snapped back, "No, it is not. I just want to pursue this matter of Jacobs fighting the Klingons."

April looked at the Starfleet contingent sitting at the table. "Very well, I will try to keep up with the shifts in your focus." The gallery emitted a few chuckles.

Jameson was irritated at that, "To go back, Captain Jacobs, did you support Admiral Adama's position in invading Klingon Space."

Jacobs leaned over to Cogley to whisper a question. "Captain Jacobs, I asked you a question, you don't need to ask council about answering."

Jacobs whispered to Cogley. "What's he up to?"

"I think he is trying 'divide and conquer'. Don't let him. Also, the crowd is responding to humor."

Jacobs nodded. "Senator, given the hostile nature of questioning, I will avail myself of council before answering your questions if I want."

Jameson snapped loudly. "I am not hostile in my questioning! How dare you call me hostile!"

Jacobs shrugged. "You are correct. I have been expertly questioned before by a hostile questioner." Jacobs looked at Kor, who looked sideways back at Jacobs with a smirk. There were a few nervous chuckles in the gallery.

"Did you support Adama in invading Klingon Space?"

Jacobs asked back, "Would this be before they invaded us or after?" Again, more chuckling.

Jameson looked around angrily, he could not notice any particular person that was audibly chuckling. In fact, in the back the doors opened and several people walked in and made their way to the front behind the Starfleet table. "I'm only aware of one time that he wanted to invade."

"And when was that, Senator?" Jacobs asked. He saw the CEO's of his corporations come in and sit down. Giving them a slight nod of recognition.

"AFTER the attack on Starbase 5!"

Jacobs nodded, "Well, Senator, the very definition of Captain is to support Admirals in action. So, yes, I supported Admiral Adama."

"That's not what I meant! Did you agree?"

"Admiral Adama gave us a copy of the orders President Bennet gave to Fifth Fleet. The conditions were met to attack Klingons in Klingon space. So, we did. Weakness in this case would invite another attack." Jacobs answered.

"Exactly what I'm looking for! You went in without consulting the President!"

Jacobs explained, "Clearly, you don't understand…."

"I understand that you are a loose cannon! Starfleet is wildly out of control!"

Jacobs continued, "…The time difference."

Bim Freshligm asked, "Excuse me, Captain. Time difference?"

Jacobs explained, "If we were to ask the President, on Earth, the round-trip time for a response would have been over two days. By that time, we would have lost the opportunity to pursue the Klingon fleet, namely their battleship Kah'less. Admiral Adama made the choice that was allowed in the orders."

"Starfleet is too eager to use force! Just like in your 'blockade' of Ghut's station!"

"Senator, there needs to be some context for that. Commander Leonaidas….." Jacobs started.

"We all know what happened there!"

Jacobs shrugged. "You keep mischaracterizing what happened. The purpose of these hearings is.."

"I convened these hearings! They're my forum!" Jameson practically squealed.

Senator Bim Freshligm asked, "Captain, you are clearly willing to tell the story. Please tell us all."

"Thank you, Senator. We went to Ghut's station in the Triangle on a mission. I was separated and captured by Kor on that mission. Commander Leonaidas in a moment came up with a plan to prevent my leaving the system. He had to not only blockade the system, but also to do a search and rescue of the station. I commended him in his efforts." Jacobs said.

Jameson sneered, "You commend his efforts. He violently enforced the blockade! He fired on ships and destroyed a Romulan ship!"

Jacobs nodded. "Yes. Remember that Ghut's station is lawless territory. It is well known that if you are there, you are not innocent and are an outlaw." Jacobs, remembering about Cogley using humor said, "And Senator, don't forget the boarding parties on the blockaded ships as well as the rescue parties on the station."

Leonaidas added, "Point to note, we rescued 98 Federation citizens in that operation."

Jameson remembered the toll well. The Orion Syndicate man who paid him a visit after that told him what the loss to the syndicate was. Cogley saw the change in Jameson's demeanor. He scribbled on an old-fashioned pad of paper, 'Jameson doesn't like the rescuing of people'. Jacobs saw the message and decided to press a point.

"Senators, my capture ended up being a very good thing over all. While I would never want to endure the Mind Sifter again, it did allow the Wisconsin to not only rescue 98 people that had no hope, but also gather intel on other black-market operations, particularly Orion Syndicate business dealings."

Cogley was watching, and saw the reaction. Cogley wrote, 'Bingo! That hit a nerve'

Jacobs continued. "I fail to see why anyone would oppose those operations. I'm personally thankful for the efforts."

Jameson wanted desperately to change subjects. "What I do not like is Starfleet personnel disregarding orders. You were recalled from the system."

Leonaidas answered. "We had no way to receive that order. We had jammed the system from any long-range subspace transmissions."

"Convienent."

Leonaidas shook his head, "Essential. I did not want word to get out and find myself outgunned with hostiles."

Jameson accusingly said, "You went looking for hostiles!"

Leonaidas shook his head. "No Senator, I did not. I went looking for my Captain. I was well within my right, my duty. As it was, we found and rescued 98 people from slavery."

"At what cost of life?"

Leonaidas said, "If they were not dealing in illicit material, they would not have been there. No legitimate commerce goes through Ghut's station. My mission was to recover the Captain."

"You didn't answer Starfleet Orders!"

"I never received them. We blacked out the system."

Jameson shook his fingered, "Starfleet regularly disregards orders from superiors, such as Fifth Fleet leaving it's post."

Admiral Adama answered, "Against my better judgement, we went to the coordinates specified to intercept a possible Klingon fleet."

"You went against what Earth recommended? The best in Starfleet?"

Admiral Nogura asked, "Who would that be? My staff and I recommended allowing on-scene commanders to do what they wanted. Was there another contingent in Starfleet consulted without my knowledge?"

"And if I could have done that, I would have intercepted them before they got to Starbase 5. Possibly even before they hit Capella." Adama continued.

"You were ordered to…." Jameson exploded.

"Remain on station until I had sufficient evidence. Once I had, Fifth Fleet proceeded at best possible speed to intercept. Too late for Capella." Adama said. Then he added, "Senator, the President made those orders, who made the recommendation for us to wait at the point intercepting to Earth?"

Jameson said, "President Bennet made the orders, he is responsible! Adama, why did you choose to invade?"

Adama was not willing to drop the matter. "Before I answer that, I want the committee to realize that the decision for Fifth Fleet to wait at the intercept path to Earth diluted the response. Instead of meeting with overwhelming force, the Klingon fleet was met with two incomplete forces. This cost lives and nearly cost us the Starbase."

"You overstate. Fifth Fleet stopped the Klingons."

"We very nearly lost the Starbase. We had loss of life in the orbital defense platforms, loss of life on the ground, massive loss of life on Capella. If we were just a little bit later, the Klingons may gave been able to deploy their weapon on the Starbase itself. Or the civilian bunker." Eli Gold realized he could have died quickly at that. A Hundred Megatons coming down on the bunker probably would have penetrated the bunker. Jameson's arguments to the president when forming the orders for Fifth fleet could have cost him his life. As it was, it nearly did cost him his life anyway. Adama continued, "All because the center of government was making the decisions instead of trusting the field commanders."

"Front-line commanders always make that argument!" Jameson said.

"Largely because it's true." Adama said. "As it was, those orders nearly cost us the battle."

"Why invade Klingon space?"

Adama said, "The Klingon fleet was making way to where we had a secret fleet pre-positioned…"

"I've been meaning to get to that. Who authorized this secret fleet?" Jameson pointed at Adama.

Admiral Nogura answered, "I did. Admiral Adama came up with the idea, we knew the Klingons were coming, and we had a very good idea where they were coming from, so we created this fleet. The cover story was each of these ships were listed as 'missing'."

"So, you lied to this committee!" Jameson yelled.

Nogura answered sharply. "This committee is proven to be a leaky source of information. The information from the Wisconsin's mission to Organia getting here before I released it proves that. Add to that Senator, YOU were the one who announced what the Wisconsin did on the record. Because that now involves Intelligence and counter-espionage, I went to the Intelligence committee and they had oversight of the hidden fleet."

"But I AM the Starfleet Oversight Committee!" Jameson yelled. A few Senator heads turned at that statement. "I have oversight on what Starfleet does, not the Intel committee."

Nogura sternly said, "Your ship is leaky. I'm not about to trust sensitive information to you."

Jameson's face was so red that Jacobs thought he was going to pop a vessel, again. Jacobs realized Jameson was so angry he didn't catch the accusation that Jameson was leaking intelligence. Adama added, "Because of the hidden fleet, the Klingon fleet was largely destroyed in their return to Klingon space. The Kah'less was undamaged in that battle and continued on."

Bim Freshligm asked. "So your decision was to get the Kah'less?"

Adama nodded, "Yes Senator. It was. That ship presented a clear and present danger to the security of the Federation. They just committed an act of war, and now they were vulnerable in losing the Kah'less, but only if we acted immediately. It was a calculated risk, and it paid off."

Jameson said, "It was an unwarranted risk, what if you couldn't destroy the Kah'less?"

Adama looked smartly at Jameson and said in his raspy voice. "Senator, that is what was included in my calculation. In my judgement, the damage we would do to the Klingons would be more than was done to us, especially if we could destroy the Kah'less."

"That's a big risk." Jameson said condescendingly.

Adama shifted in his seat. "That's what you pay me for. Admirals sometimes need to make risky decisions. Senators are not, Senators are risk-adverse, that is why you are so critical of us. You do not understand what it takes to succeed in battle."

"DO NOT LECTURE ME ADAMA! I've taken big risks in my life! I know how to take risks."

April said flatly, "Senator Jameson, speaking as a former Admiral who now is a Senator, you do not. You have never made decisions that could cost the lives of hundreds if not thousands of people. Adama's decisions were considerably more than that. His decisions quite probably saved the Federation."

Jameson turned and snapped, "It could have gone wrong! He could have been wrong!"

April nodded, "But it did not go wrong. Us sitting here and the Klingon delegation sitting right there listening to this whole hearing live instead of on recording proves it. You would be unfit for command of a fleet."

"I would not be! Some losses are acceptable! Leonaidas should have cut and run when Jacobs was captured! Adama should have stayed put to prevent the Klingons from coming to Earth! Adama's own actions pushed the Klingons to Starbase 5!"

All was quiet for several moments. Adama spoke quietly with conviction. "Then I believe that the residents of Starbase 5, Capella, and who knows who else should be thankful that you weren't in command."

Jameson exploded in fury. "Adama, you are out of line! You are a warmongering maniac! You and that commando Starship Wisconsin. You all are the biggest menace to the quadrant! Even the Klingons like you! You guys are so chummy with the barbaric Klingons it's sickening. Jacobs is even an official 'friend of the family'. How come Starfleet hasn't officially reprimanded him or transferred him to somewhere out of contact? Your solution to a problem is to hit it, not with a proper amount of force, but an overwhelming amount of force! You don't fight fair, you cheat, you lie, and you…."

Jacobs suddenly said, "Win. We win, Senator. And we save lives doing it. Overwhelming force usually costs less lives, on both sides."

"I'm going to destroy you, Jacobs! I'm…."

Jacobs nodded, "Going to destroy me. I know. You have made that clear. I get it." A moment of clarity and peace came over Jacobs. He knew where to go. "You have threatened all sorts of vile and bitter things to happen to me. I do not care. I've had my life threatened by professionals." Jacobs motioned to Kang and Kor. The two of them looked at Jacobs and nodded. "What can you do to me, Senator?"

"I will destroy you!"

Kang spoke loudly and firmly. "Senator Jameson, committee. Hear me now what I speak. Jacobs speaks the truth. In facing Kor and I he has not only faced death numerous times; he has done so honorably. I reference to what Captain Jackson said earlier, Jacobs has a special way about him. His God has a way of making Jacobs' enemies his friends or…"

Jameson waited, then asked sarcastically. "Or what?"

Kang said matter-of-factly. "The God of Jacobs will destroy his enemies. Proverbs 16:7"