A/N: This story is a collaborative effort between myself and Desert Sunrise. Cover illustration depicting the dragon tattoo on Samantha Traynor's back was created in pen and ink for me by my talented daughter.

Please Note: The Hanyu Pinyin translations below do not transfer correctly from my original docs. As an example, the accent marks for the following statement print to the side of the letters that should be modified, affecting the a, i, and o and u. I have corrected this by deleting the accents and bold-facing the affected letters, which may make the pronunciations inaccurate. My apologies. In this example, I used bold-faced letters to illustrate the errors — Nǐ kàn qǐlái yǒudiǎn niánqīngle, hē píjiǔ — The Chinese/English translations appear in brackets immediately after the Chinese words—these are non-spoken words and are generally in italics for translations of spoken Chinese, or non-italic for translations of thoughts in Chinese.

There is no such thing as justice, all the best that we can hope for is revenge. — Emilie Autumn

Ài – [愛 – love] (whether spoken by Xiùlán or Samantha, the meaning is 'Luv')]
Chandra - insect resembling a honeybee, same name as sweetening nectar it produces (Thessian)
Inamorata – A woman with whom one is in love; a female lover (Italian)
Kaffe – equatorial Thessian vine, the seeds of which are used to produce a non-alcoholic beverage of the same name, the taste described as a mix of coffee and chocolate. (Thessian/Source: CDN)
OMPF – Official Military Personnel File. Administrative record, containing information about the subject's service history, such as: date/type of enlistment/appointment; duty stations and assignments; training, etc.
Qíngfū or Qíngrén – [情夫 – lover]
Qīzi – [妻子 – wife]

• Adjudicator's Mercy •

• SYSTEMS ALLIANCE COURTS AND LEGAL OFFICES, PRESIDIUM · CITADEL •
⸰ Monday Morning, 23 June 2188-CE ⸰

An extremely tall human—female in appearance—the attached hood of a midnight grey leather duster pulled well over her head, slipped into the rearmost row of chairs mere seconds after the presiding judge instructed everyone within the medium-sized courtroom to retake their seats. A few people surreptitiously took notice of the woman, only to quickly look away as she sat down, gracefully crossed her legs—left thigh over right—and leaned back in the chair.

She was curious. The person sitting in detention was visible on the large monitors in the chamber. As the recently convicted criminal refused to remain silent for this phase of his trial, the audio feed had been muted. He could be seen speaking—in point of fact, shouting and, at times, screaming at the top of his lungs—as he persistently and vehemently maintained his innocence of any wrong doing. After having been found guilty of all the criminal charges brought against him by the Systems Alliance, he continued to loudly protest his perceived ill treatment at the hands of the Alliance Navy and Marines; today, he would learn what punishment his felonious acts had earned him.

The adjudicator, being the same lieutenant colonel that had presided over the man's trial, pointedly ignored his refusal to remain quiet, choosing instead to move the proceedings forward by solemnly proclaiming, "In the matter of one Jason Joesiar, having been found guilty on all counts against you, and in recognition that a state of martial law still exists for all the regions subject to Systems Alliance jurisdiction, this court sentences you to death." The judge paused at the slight rustling sounds and bits of whispered conversations he heard as those in attendance reacted. Banging his gavel twice on its sounding block, he warned, "There will be order in this courtroom!"

With a hush once more descending on the chamber, he continued, "This court hereby reduces your sentence to life in prison, with no possibility of parole or early release; sentence to begin immediately. Once transportation is arranged, you will be moved to the Maximum Security Detention Facility at Arcturus Station, there to live out the remainder of your life behind bars."

He banged the gavel once more as he announced, "Court is adjourned." After placing his thumb on the datapad he'd been holding, he quickly handed it to his bailiff, who then faced the small audience to loudly order, "All rise!" The JAG officer stood, gathered up his notes, stepped down from the central platform, and left the courtroom through the door behind his desk.

Standing along with everyone else, Alliance Navy Captain Yuán Xiùlán watched on the monitors as a pair of grim-faced Marines hauled Joesiar to his feet. After clamping his hands behind his back with a set of wrist binders, they hustled him out of the hearings cell. Thinking, Sà mǐ is gonna absolutely hate this, she left the courtroom and strode away from the so-called hall of justice. The mouth-breathing xiao húndàn [小混蛋 – little bastard] will be left to rot in a three-and-a-half-square meter cell, when he should have been … zhanshou! [斬首 – beheaded] Confinement for life? Gāisi de! [該死的！- Damn it!] What's to prevent that life sentence from being reduced to 'time served' at some future date?

She shook her head in mental denial as she boarded an air-taxi. After entering the Alliance dock coordinates, she instructed the onboard VI to fly her to her current home—SSV Hong Kong II—then leaned back in the seat and tried to relax. Still, she found it difficult to shake the vision of the pasty-faced little whore son—whom she refused to think of as a man—hollering and jumping about in his cell as the judge announced his punishment.

I'd be willing to bet Sà mǐ and I have not seen the last of Jason Joesiar. And what of Miranda? All the pain … all the physical abuse … suffered at his hands? Continuing to ponder the matter, she attempted to emulate her Qíngrén by looking at the situation from multiple viewpoints, all while gazing outside as the X3M traveled at high speed through the station's structure. Dammit, Xiùlán, she chastised herself mentally. You're allowing Sà mi's paranoia concerning all things Alliance to cloud your own thinking.

The X3M-T, upon entering the Alliance controlled docks, was cleared past the waiting guards as soon as Xiùlán passed through the bio-scanner. Gliding slowly to dock C-7, it slowed its pace even more as it approached berth Zero-two, coming to a stationary hover in the middle of the personnel drop-off zone reserved for the Hong Kong.

Activating her omnitool, she passed it through the VI's collection scanner, then smirked slightly as the payment indicator flashed green. One of the perks of serving in the Alliance military was free ground transportation while stationed or living on the Citadel, either in assigned quarters ashore or on a moored warship. She climbed out of the speeder, released it back to Citadel control, and watched for a few moments as the canopy closed and it spun about, then slowly accelerated away.

• SSV HONG KONG II · ALLIANCE DOCK CHARLIE SEVEN, CITADEL•

Heaving a sigh, Captain Yuan returned the salutes being held by the pair of Marines standing guard at the foot of the deployed loading ramp and strode up and into her ship's hanger bay. Her ship. She smiled at the feelings of joy mixed with excitement and pride that thought still imparted in her chest. Her ship. Xiùlán's climb through the ranks had happened quite rapidly – her promotion to captain, along with being placed in charge of the Hong Kong II, had happened less than 13 years after her enlistment in the Alliance Navy on her eighteenth birthday. Sadly, she realized the partial reason for her rapid rise through the ranks was due in no small part to the decimation of command-rank personnel, lost to the recently concluded war with the Reapers.

At the aft end of the hanger deck, she boarded the elevator for the short ride to Deck Two. Greeting the crewmen she passed as she strode out of the elevator and around its supporting structure, she went straight to her quarters on the port side; once inside, she removed and hung her heavy duster in the small closet beside her bed, then prepared some tea—enough to fill a mug each for herself and a guest. Standing behind her desk, she activated her comms and said, "Lieutenant Cross, please ask Ms Lawson to report to my quarters." Cutting the connection as soon as he replied, "Aye, Captain," she moved back to her small beverage counter, there to fill two mugs with the fragrant brew. She placed the mugs on her desk just as the entry request activated the digitally reproduced music of Chinese wind chimes. Saying "Enter," she remained standing as the hatch slid into its bulkhead recess to admit Miranda Lawson.

Waving at the chair positioned in front of her desk, she took her own seat behind it as Lawson nodded and sat down. "We need to talk, Miri." Indicating the tea-filled mug before her, she continued, "I find sipping tea makes it easier to have a discussion regarding unpleasant things."

Miranda took a couple of sips of the aromatic beverage, then quietly replied as she leaned back in her chair, "Ma'am? And what unpleasant things do we have to discuss?"

Xiùlán fixed the petty officer—and dear friend—with her eyes as she whispered one word. "Joesiar." The color drained from Miranda's face as her captain continued, "I was at his sentencing hearing an hour ago." Shaking her head in disbelief, she added, "Death, immediately reduced to life in prison, no possibility of parole. He's going to be transported to Arcturus Station and locked away … supposedly forever."

Miranda took several more sips from her mug while attempting to comprehend how Joesiar had been so fortunate. After several moments lost in thought, she met her captain's eyes from across the rim of the mug cupped in both hands while commenting, "So, he avoided having to forfeit his life." She took another sip from her mug, then sighed, "It would seem you have doubts about him being locked away forever, Captain; I expect you called me in here in order to explain why."

After taking a sip of tea, Xiùlán softly stated, "I've been in a relationship with Samantha Traynor since we volunteered for the Alliance's Ø7 program, winter of 2178. She's of the opinion—a rather strong opinion, and one I reluctantly began to embrace prior to the war's conclusion—that the Alliance simply uses people up, then casts them aside. She sees conspiracies everywhere, all perpetrated by Alliance upper brass." She took another sip from her mug, then continued, "Unfortunately, there appears to be some actual validity to her beliefs … beliefs I expect are the main reason she just submitted her request to resign from the Navy."

Miranda reacted in stunned surprise. Cobalt-blue eyes wide, she sputtered, "No! Really? She was just released from the hospital! Where will she go? What will she do?"

Xiùlán dissembled, saying, "I don't know." Reverting back to the truth, she concluded, "Her knowledge of electronics … computers? All off the charts, Miri. I expect she'll quickly land a job … one that will probably pay her more than our three salaries combined." She paused to finish the contents of her mug, then continued. "But … I've drifted off topic. I wanted you to hear about Joesiar's so-called humanitarian punishment from me, before it turns up on ANN or Westerlund News. I know of your recent visit to Sha'ira, probably to reinforce what she taught you about coping with mental anguish."

"Your concern is noted … and appreciated, Xiùlán, but the wretched little bastard can no longer hurt me. As you say, he's to be locked away for the rest of his life. He won't be free again, ever!"

Xiùlán frowned. "I wish I shared your optimism concerning the permanence of his incarceration, Miri. It's just … his punishment doesn't seem nearly harsh enough, considering his multiple attempts to kidnap you, plus his conspiracy to have us both murdered. Then there's his sadistic treatment of you in Vancouver, crimes for which I firmly believe he should have been charged, in addition to his streak of law-breaking here on the Citadel." Shaking her head, she added, "As long as he still breathes, he's a potential threat to you, to me, and Sà mi."

Miranda studied the mug in her hands and queried, "What can we do about that now, Captain?"

"For the moment, nothing, but …" she paused for several moments to gather her thoughts. "After I speak with my Qíngrén, I'll have a better sense of what, if anything, can be done to insure the miserable xiao húndàn [小混蛋 –little bastard] remains behind bars until his death from old age."

"If there's anything you need from me to help accomplish that, please … tell me. He's the worst kind of misogynistic, xenophobic racist I've ever had the misfortune to encounter." She paused for a moment before adding, "Unfortunately, he would have been a perfect fit as a member of Cerberus." Finishing the contents of her own mug, she placed it on the desk in front of her and said, "I should probably return to work, Ma'am. Was there anything else you wished to discuss?"

Xiùlán accompanied a slight sideways shake of her head with a thin smile, saying, "No, Ms Lawson … that'll be all. You're dismissed."

Miranda's attempt at a smile only managed to turn the corners of her mouth up. Saying, "Aye, Captain," she stood, turned, and left to return to her post.

Xiùlán enabled her comms system, this time to place a call to her Inamorata. Sà mi needs to hear the news as well, especially after Lieutenant Colonel Elliot Chapman reduced Joesiar's sentence from the bench, came the thought. Something smells, and I'd be willing to bet a month's wages that Sà mi will agree with me!

• SSV HONG KONG II · ALLIANCE DOCK CHARLIE SEVEN, CITADEL •
⸰ 24 June 2188-CE – Mid-Morning ⸰

I casually strolled up to the base of Hong Kong's boarding ramp and asked one of the Marine guards to inform the ship's captain I had arrived for our meeting. After a short, hushed conversation over his comms, he announced, "Ms Lawson will be here shortly to escort you aboard and show you to Captain Yuán's quarters, Ma'am."

I thanked him, then turned to face forward. After the passage of a few minutes, I heard quiet footsteps approaching down the ramp from behind me; I turned around just as the footfalls halted a meter away. She offered her right hand, and in her lightly accented voice said, "Captain Yuán asked me to escort you to her quarters. Welcome to the Hong Kong II, Ms Traynor."

I glanced at her hand before meeting her eyes, then reached for and grasped it in a firm grip. Of some surprise, she gently pulled us together, gripped my right shoulder with her left hand and placed her mouth beside my ear; her breath fluttered my hair as she whispered, "Captain Yuán told me of your pending separation from the Navy, Sammy; I am terribly sorry you feel it necessary to take this course of action. If there's anything I can do to help you, please call me … despite what you may believe, there are still a lot of good people wearing the uniform. Now, let's get down to business." She pushed back slightly and released my hand; speaking in a normal tone as she turned around, she said, "If you will please follow me, I will escort you to Captain Yuán's cabin."

In a matter of minutes, we were standing outside Xiùlán's quarters; Miranda waved her omnitool past the haptic interface, which responded instantly – the music of Chinese wind bells could be faintly heard from within. The glowing interface cross-faded from red to green, then vanished as the hatch quietly retracted into its recess, revealing the smiling face of my Inamorata. Standing from her chair, she moved around her desk in order to wave me inside while addressing Miranda, "Thank you, Ms Lawson. You may return to your duties."

Miranda nodded, said, "Aye, Captain," then turned and strode away; Xiùlán following as far as the hatch. Locking it once it had closed behind us, she turned to greet me by gathering me into her arms while purring, "Sà mi … it is wonderful to see you on your feet again, and even more wonderful to hold you in my arms once more. How are you feeling, my darling?"

I grunted at the strength of her embrace and answered, "Ease up just a bit, Luv … I'm still a wee bit sore inside," before greedily planting my lips on hers in a passionate kiss; after capturing her lower lip between my teeth, I released the tender morsel by allowing it to slowly slide past my teeth and lips. "I have really missed this, Linn. Hell! I've missed 'us'!"

She smirked at hearing my nickname for her; delivering a final, quick little kiss to the tip of my nose, she released me so she could move to her beverage station. Indicating the chair in front of her desk, she said, "Have a seat, Sà mi, while I pour us each a cup of tea. I have some news to share with you … news about which you will undoubtedly be downright infuriated."

"I'd not expect good news if I'm to hear about it while sitting in your quarters on this bloody frigate, Ai." I watched and waited as my Inamorata brought a pair of steaming mugs of Jasmine tea to her desk; setting one in front of me, she took a careful sip from her own, placed it on the desk and sat in her chair. I took a cautious sip from my own mug, discovering it was sweetened with what tasted like Chandra. "Must be some seriously odious news if you're using the good stuff in an attempt to sugar-coat it. So? …" I grinned. "Let's have it."

"Joesiar." She took several sips from her mug; when I didn't comment or question, she leaned back in her chair and explained, "I attended the hearing for his sentencing yesterday morning, Sà mi. Liú koushui de jìnü de érzi [流口水的妓女的兒子 – Drooling whoreson] was condemned to death, only to have the judge immediately reduce that sentence to life in prison, no possibility of parole." She sipped tea from her mug as she waited for my inevitable explosion.

"Really!? We're still living under martial law, and he managed to skate past a death sentence?" I took a sip of tea and mulled this bit of bad news around in my head. "Does that not bother you?"

"Oh, it does bother me … a great deal, actually, but probably not for the reasons you might believe." After taking another sip of tea, she continued, "What seriously concerns me is the leniency of his punishment." At my questioning expression, she continued in an even voice. "On the face of it, life in prison will not be a walk in the park for him, but … it just doesn't fit his crimes, Sà mi! After all I went through to rescue Miranda from the Blue Suns in Vancouver? Then testifying against him in court? And Miranda! … my God, Sà mi, everything she survived in Vancouver … multiple rapes? Incredibly brutal beatings, numerous times? Not to mention his several attempts on both our lives here on the Citadel!" She shook her head, still in disbelief.

"Who was the presiding judge?"

"Same officer that presided over his trial—Lieutenant Colonel Elliot Chapman—JAG lawyer; well-respected, to the best of my knowledge." Her eyes widened slightly as she cocked her head and asked, "You think it's possible he was bought, Sà mi? It's only been a couple of weeks since the colonel found Joesiar guilty." She looked down, studying the mug she clutched in both hands.

I chuckled lightly, my apparent mirth bringing her eyes back up to meet mine. "I must be a really bad influence on you, Xiùlán. My penchant for conspiracy theories involving Alliance brass seems to have affected your thinking." I grinned at her instant look of mock indignation.

"I don't believe in conspiracies, Sà mi … at least, not to the same degree as you. But Joesiar was sentenced to die for his crimes; Chapman instantly reduced that to a lifetime prison sentence. That really bothers me!" She took several more sips of tea as she pondered yesterday morning's proceedings. "You know as well as I that any sentence can be reduced, or commuted. Hell, he could even receive a pardon at some point in the future, and any of those possibilities means he simply strolls out of prison. In the eyes of the law, he will have paid for his crimes."

I nodded in agreement. After taking a sip of tea, I set the mug on her desk and gave voice to what I expected she was thinking. "You want me to look into Lieutenant Colonel Chapman? See if I can discover if his strings were being pulled, and if so, by whom?"

"I wouldn't want you to spend a lot of time or resources on this, Sà mi. We probably have twenty-five or thirty-some years to think about this. Any pardon that little húndàn [混蛋 – asshole] receives will be a long time in arriving—long enough for him to have fallen off most people's radar … undoubtedly what the people behind this judicial miscarriage are counting on." She paused, staring into her nearly empty mug for several moments before hooded eyes returned their gaze to me. "We're not most people, Sà mǐ. We absolutely must be vigilant, wo de Ài. [我的愛 – my Luv] I seriously doubt Joesiar will simply sit in his cell reading or learning to crochet. He'll spend that time making plans—plans to exact revenge on the three or four people he blames for all his misfortunes."

"Those people being Miranda, you, me … possibly even General Park." I stood, picked up the empty mugs and took them to her beverage station; I turned back to face her and said, "I need to get back to Iringù-Eßizkur so I can start digging for answers, Luv. Call Miranda … ask her to escort me off the ship; once we're outside, I'll chat with her for a few moments before I leave the docks."

She eased herself away from the desk, moving to embrace me again after asking Lieutenant Cross to send Miranda back down to her quarters. "I'm going to really miss you, wo de Ài! It seems the only time we get together anymore is when a gou shi fēngbào [狗屎風暴 – shit storm] arrives to make our lives miserable." She longingly applied her lips to mine in a passionate kiss, then pushed back slightly as the calming sound of wind chimes announced Miranda's presence outside the hatch.

Xiùlán's words feathered delicately across my lips. "Zhàogù hao zìji, qīn'ài de. [照顧好自己，親愛的 – Take care of yourself, honey] With a quick little kiss on my mouth, she released me, saying, "Enter," as she turned to face her door.

Upon seeing us standing in front of the desk, the corners of Miranda's mouth lifted slightly as she took a step into Xiùlán's quarters. "Ready to leave, Sammy?"

I would have smiled, but the seriousness and subject matter of my meeting with Xiùlán had trashed whatever joy I might have been feeling prior to our meeting. I solemnly replied, "Lead the way, Ms Lawson," as I took the few steps necessary to move up beside her.

Miranda accompanied me to the nearby drop-off zone where I had parked my speeder. Pausing before I unlocked the canopy, I laid a hand on her shoulder and gently turned her to face me; in a husky voice just slightly louder than a whisper, I said, "Xiùlán and I had a discussion concerning the lack of real punishment meted out to Joesiar yesterday morning."

I could see a hint of fire smoldering in the beautiful violet-blue eyes gazing back at me. "Please consider me an ally, in whatever tasks you may undertake, concerning that odious example of humanity, Sammy. I don't wish for him to ever experience freedom again."

I nodded in response to her words, then embraced her tightly; burying my face in her luxuriant mane of ebony hair in order to place my mouth next to her ear, I breathed, "If he ever gets out, Miri – no matter how far in the future that may be, you can rest assured he will be living on borrowed time." Drawing back, I placed a quick kiss on her cheek, slowly released her, then turned and climbed into my speeder. She unhurriedly backed away as I brought the small powerplant to life and slowly left the Alliance docks. Little did I know at that moment just how prophetic my assurance to her would turn out to be.

• SSV HONG KONG II · ALLIANCE DOCKS, CITADEL •
⸰ 20 July 2188-CE – Early Evening ⸰

Captain Yuán Xiùlán had retired to her quarters for the evening; having just completed writing her bi-weekly report, she went to close out her terminal, only to be interrupted by the repeating chime indicating an incoming call. Upon seeing the identity of the caller, she pressed the ACCEPT control and answered with a happy smile. "Sà mi … it's wonderful to hear from you."

"It's wonderful to speak with you again. Unfortunately, this is a business call. I wish I had better news for you, Ai." I glanced over at my research display—out of camera range—then returned my gaze to the sable-brown eyes calmly regarding me from her quarters inside the Alliance frigate. "Unfortunately, I can find no evidence of Lieutenant Colonel Elliot Chapman receiving any kind of payoff or bribe to reduce Joesiar's sentence for his crimes." I took another glance at my research monitor before continuing. "What I can confirm was the gross amount of political pressure that was applied to the Colonel, between the trial's conclusion and the penalty hearing. It appears Chapman is more or less acquainted with General Joesiar." Xiùlán's eyes went wide at this bit of info. "Between the general's … and Councilor Dominic Osoba's … daily stream of messages touting Jason's consistently unfair treatment by … well, everyone, Chapman caved in just enough so the little bastard could live out his life in a cramped metal box at Arcturus Station."

"Gāisi!" [該死！- Damn it!] The happy smile from before had long since evaporated from my Qíngrén's face. She covered her eyes by using thumb and fingers of her left hand; after massaging both temples for a few moments, she dropped her hand and returned her gaze to my image on her monitor. "Nothing for it now but to remain vigilant, Sà mi. The Arc's prison is said to be the most secure lockup ever, but we both know that no prison is completely escape proof; that said, I seriously doubt Joesiar has enough smarts to effect an escape from that place. He'll most likely be set free … probably as soon as thirty, thirty-five years from now, when everyone's memory of his crimes will have faded into ghostly shadows."

I chuckled at that. "There are five people I can think of that will never forget about that liú koushui de jìnü de érzi, [流口水的妓女的兒子 – drooling whore's son] my darling; you, Miranda, General Park, Kaidan Alenko, and myself. I will always have 'im in my sights, Xiùlán. I've already informed Miranda – if he does get out before his sentence is complete—which to me, means he dies while he's still in prison—he will most certainly be living on borrowed time."

My lover's smile from before had returned as a grimace. "I am in complete agreement with you on this, Sà mi. Jason Joesiar's life should have been terminated, so if a time ever comes when he's prematurely released from lockup, and you require any top cover or backstopping to eliminate him from the gene pool without fear of blowback, I will be right there by your side."

"Okay, then." I beamed at her, saying, "Méiyou ni de ài wo de shēnghuó shì bù wánzhěng de! [沒有你的愛我的生活是不完整的 – My life is incomplete without your love] Stay safe, darling."

"Ér wo duì ni de ài jiù xiàng tiāndì yīyàng chíjiu, sà màn shā." [而我對你的愛就像天地一樣持久，薩曼莎 – And my love for you lasts like heaven and earth, Samantha. {Literally, is as enduring as the sky}] You stay safe as well, my darling, and keep in touch." Heaving a heavy sigh that was equal parts longing and loneliness, she cut the connection and leaned back in her chair.