Planet Killer (A Captain's Crucible Book 4) Read online

  “Sustained,” Nefarian said. “Please refrain from using the word mutiny in any context while questioning the witness.”

  “My apologies,” Lanvar said. “Maxwell, Captain Dallas was exhibiting behaviors that were prejudicial to good order and discipline, and harmful to the chain of command, without proper authority?”

  “He was,” Maxwell said.

  “Shouldn’t Captain Dallas have been preparing for the battle rather than plotting to replace the admiral?” Lanvar said.

  “Repair swarms fixed the damage from our previous battle, but otherwise there was nothing to prepare for. The admiral had a complete battle plan already drawn up.”

  “But Captain Dallas could have provided some feedback on that plan, couldn’t he?” Lanvar pressed.

  “The admiral hadn’t shared it in its entirety.... he intended to present his plans to the captains all at once, at a conference a few days before battle.”

  “But Jonathan could have given him advice anyway. He is supposed to be a skilled tactician.”

  “That is true,” Maxwell said.

  “And yet he did not.”

  “No,” Maxwell replied.

  “When Captain Dallas was placed in the brig by Admiral Knox for his actions, the admiral assigned a new captain in his place: Commander Scott from the Hurricane. According to the logs, Captain Scott froze up during a later battle, forcing Commander Cray to relieve him. We won’t get into whether or not Cray’s actions were justified, since Cray isn’t on trial here today—though I’m certain he will be at some point. In any case, one could readily conclude that Captain Dallas’ arrest allowed a lesser man to take command, thereby endangering the fleet. Correct?”

  “That could be inferred, yes,” Maxwell said.

  “No further questions,” Lanvar said.

  McAvoy had no more questions either, so Lanvar called for Rodriguez next.

  A hologram of the captain materialized in the witness box. The olive-skinned, baby-faced Rodriguez looked tired, his eyes puffy as if he hadn’t slept in days. His fatigues were pristine as always, of course, and almost seemed incongruous when matched to that face. It could have been an illusion of the virtual reality. In fact, it probably was.

  Rodriguez proceeded to explain how Jonathan’s executive officer Robert Cray had reached out to the other captains, and attempted to sway them to Jonathan’s way of thinking.

  “I was sold,” Rodriguez said. “And I planned to support Captain Dallas in his vote of no confidence, but I withdrew my support at the last moment when it became obvious Admiral Knox knew of the captain’s intentions. The admiral threatened to arrest those of us who threw their support behind Dallas, so we all kept quiet while Dallas, the only real man among us, stood up against Knox.”

  “So in his private communications, Commander Cray actually told you Captain Dallas was planning a vote of no confidence?” Lanvar asked.

  “No,” Rodriguez said. “At no point did Cray ever mention a vote of no confidence. It was all indirect. Implied. But I understood what he was getting at well enough.”

  “That is interesting,” Lanvar said, turning toward the seven officers behind the bench. “I’d like to submit another item from the Callaway’s video archives as evidence.”

  Once more a holographic video image of Jonathan’s office appeared, showing him and Robert seated across from each other.

  “Send out general feeler messages to the captains,” Jonathan’s image said. “Don’t mention anything about replacing the admiral. Instead, tell them everything we know about the aliens. Whatever you do, don’t ever broach the subject of a vote of no confidence directly. Unless you want to be arrested for sedition.”

  The video feed winked out.

  “Objection,” McAvoy said. “Commander Cray isn’t the one on trial. I respectfully request that the video be struck from the evidence.”

  “I only meant to illustrate how Captain Dallas illicitly utilized his crew in his attempt to subvert the admiral,” Lanvar said.

  “Objection sustained,” Nefarian said. “The officers of the crew were following orders, and they are not the ones on trial. The video will be struck from the evidence.”

  “I’d like to say something,” Rodriguez announced.

  “Go ahead,” Nefarian said.

  “Jonathan was correct to stand up against the admiral,” Rodriguez said. “It was wrong of Knox to risk our whole fleet single-mindedly in pursuit of the mission like that. The morals question was one thing, but having us split up our fleet, reducing our numbers so that the enemy could pick us off? It’s Knox’s fault that we almost lost all of Task Group 72.5 in the following battle. It was only because of the quick thinking on Cray’s part that any of us returned home alive.”

  “How was the admiral’s flagship lost in the battle?” Lanvar said.

  “She was cut in half by one of the enemy capital ships,” Rodriguez answered.

  “And the destroyer that contained the planet killer?”

  “The robots manning the vessel detonated it to prevent the bomb from falling into enemy hands,” Rodriguez said. “Taking down the closest members of the enemy fleet.”

  “How many of them, roughly?” Lanvar asked.

  “I’d say, about three-quarters,” Rodriguez replied.

  “Three-quarters?” Lanvar exclaimed. “But you just said that it was the quick thinking on Cray’s part that saved the fleet. It sounds like the detonation of the planet killer saved you.”

  “It was Cray who saved us from the last quarter of the enemy,” Rodriguez said.

  “And not Jonathan,” Lanvar said.

  “How could it have been Jonathan?” Rodriguez said. “He was in the brig at the time. But Jonathan, he proved his worth in later battles don’t you worry. Why don’t you show the court what he did in the Elder galaxy? How he defeated thirty pursuing alien ships by drawing them into the orbit of a binary star?”

  “Because what Jonathan did after his disobedient actions has no bearing on the court’s decision,” Lanvar said. “No further questions.”

  McAvoy rose. “The defense has no questions.”

  The seven officers all glanced at the defense counsel.

  Nefarian said: “Does the defense plan to recall the witness at a later date?”

  “No,” McAvoy said.

  What? Jonathan sent the man via the text message feature of his aReal glasses. Why?

  I don’t want him to say anything that could further incriminate you, his legal counsel responded. He means well, but he could very easily paint you into a corner. He’s done enough. Let him go.

  “The court wishes to question the witness, then,” Nefarian said. “Rodriguez, how is your working relationship with Captain Dallas?”

  “We have a good working relationship,” Rodriguez said.

  “Would you consider yourself friends?”

  “I would.”

  “That factored into your decision to support his vote of no confidence?”

  “It did,” Rodriguez said. “But I would have supported it even if we weren’t on good terms. Aliens were attacking us, and the admiral was too busy trying to start a war with the Sino-Koreans to properly arrange a defense. If there was one time Article 1088 was applicable, it was then.”

  “Thank you, captain,” Nefarian said. “No further questions.”

  Lanvar summoned Rail to the stand next.

  four

  Jonathan bobbed his foot nervously, waiting for Rail to appear. She was certainly taking her time. His guilt or acquittal very likely depended on her testimony, so he wished she would hurry it up. The thought crossed his mind that she was purposely dragging it out, perhaps to watch him squirm.

  Finally her hologram materialized, appearing much more well-rested than that of Rodriguez. She had cut her hair into a short bob whose bangs framed her attractive face.

  She stared at Jonathan with a mean expression, that grumpy frown seeming deeper than ever.

  After swearing her in, Lanvar
said: “Tell us your former position in Task Group 72.5.”

  “Captain of the Salvador,” she said, that scowl still directed at Jonathan. “Reporting directly to Admiral Knox.”

  “Tell us—” Lanvar began.

  She raised a hand. “I came here wanting to testify against Captain Dallas. No, not wanting... I was literally chomping at the bit. I was intent on seeing justice done for what happened to Admiral Knox. But I realized something on the the journey home. Admiral Knox was not infallible. He could make mistakes. And he made a very big one. We should have never attempted to deploy that planet killer against the Sino-Koreans. It was all kinds of wrong.” Her features softened and Jonathan realized she was not scowling at him per se, but was perhaps angry at herself or what she had originally intended to say. “I’m glad NAVCENT vindicated Jonathan’s actions with their later communication repealing the order. I was angry at the time, because Jonathan had rebelled against the admiral before that communication was received, and that seemed very wrong to me. But in retrospect, he did the right thing.

  “So I’m sorry, I can’t do what I came here to do. I can’t testify against Captain Dallas. Instead, I testify for him. He has done so much good for our former task group, taken the huge mess created by the admiral and made something good out of it, steadfastly leading the survivors of the fleet through situations that would have made a lesser man blanch. I certainly would have crumpled under all that pressure. The engagements we fought were highly pitched, with the odds stacked against us.

  “But Jonathan Dallas stayed true to the course and got us home. Some of us, anyway, with the rest due to arrive in five to six months. And he secured an alliance with an alien race in the process. He is a good man, with high morals, and a skilled negotiator and tactician to boot. It would be a shame for the navy to lose him. That’s all I have to say.”

  Jonathan stared at her wide-eyed. Was this the same Captain Rail he knew? Or had someone hijacked her VR feed and sent a digital impostor in her place?

  When she saw his incredulous gaze, her face hardened once more and she said: “Don’t think this means I’m going to go soft on you if we serve together again.”

  Jonathan smiled inwardly. It was indeed her.

  “Now Captain Rail, you can’t just—” Lanvar began.

  “That’s all I have to say,” Rail said. “You have my deposition. Thank you.”

  Her hologram vanished.

  Can she actually do that? Jonathan texted McAvoy.

  The judge advocate could issue a court order forcing her to return at some point, McAvoy replied. But that would serve only to delay the trial. Even if she returns, she isn’t compelled to answer questions.

  Couldn’t she be tried for refusing to testify?

  She could. But I doubt Lanvar would take it that far. Her testimony isn’t that important to the case. He has everything he needs with the memory dumps from the Callaway’s AI core.

  Only one other captain from Task Group 72.5 had returned with them: Sil Chopra. But she wasn’t present during the vote of no confidence, so it was doubtful she would be called to testify. McAvoy certainly had no intention of calling her to the stand.

  “I have no more witnesses,” Lanvar said, as expected.

  McAvoy arose.

  “Captain Jonathan Dallas,” the defense counsel said. “Please take the stand.”

  Jonathan accessed the navigation menu of his aReal and chose the teleportation feature, as there wasn’t enough space in his cell for him to simply walk to the stand, as he might collide with something along the way, such as the prison bars. He placed the resultant cross-hairs over the witness stand and engaged, instantaneously transferring his avatar to the raised platform.

  “Captain Jonathan Dallas,” McAvoy said. “Of the USS Callaway. Tell us in your own words why you chose to call for a vote of no confidence against Admiral Hartford Knox.”

  “A hundred million human lives were at stake,” Jonathan said. “Not to mention the fragile peace between the Sino-Koreans and the United Systems. I couldn’t allow the deployment of the planet killer to proceed. Not when a new alien war seemed imminent.”

  “A new alien war,” McAvoy said. “So you were convinced the attackers were alien, as Maxwell said?”

  “I was,” Jonathan said. “I believed from the start that they were. By deploying the planet killer into the Tau Ceti star, the United Systems would have placed itself into a war against two fronts, one versus the aliens, the other the Sino-Koreans.”

  “And your actions would have prevented that?” McAvoy said.

  “They would have,” Jonathan said. “If I had succeeded. Though when the aliens forced us to detonate the planet killer, they spared us from that fate anyway.”

  “Your witness,” McAvoy told Lanvar.

  Lanvar stepped forward. “Captain Dallas, do you consider yourself a man of high morals?”

  “I do,” Jonathan answered.

  “Are those morals superior to the beliefs of everyone else?” Lanvar said. “Specifically, the officers you serve under?”

  “Objection,” McAvoy said. “Badgering the witness.”

  “Question withdrawn,” Lanvar said. “Tell me something, Captain Dallas. If the order had not been rescinded by NAVCENT, and you remained in full communication with Navy Central Command the the entire time, would you have proceeded?”

  “Objection,” McAvoy said. “Speculative scenario.”

  “Overruled,” Nefarian said. “Answer the question, Captain Dallas,”

  Jonathan hesitated. Nothing but the truth... “I would have disobeyed. We couldn’t afford to divide humanity, not at a time like that, with aliens in pursuit.”

  “And if there had been no aliens? And the order had still come?”

  Jonathan glanced at McAvoy.

  “Objection,” McAvoy said. “Speculation. We know for a fact that aliens pursued the fleet.”

  “But Jonathan didn’t know it at the time,” Lanvar said. “Not for certain. He suspected, and says he was convinced, but there is always a margin for doubt. I’m trying to establish that Jonathan would have disobeyed the order regardless of whether the fleet was harried by Sino-Koreans or aliens.”

  “Overruled,” Nefarian said. “Please answer, Captain Dallas.”

  Jonathan sighed. “I would have disobeyed. There’s nothing that can justify the death of a hundred million human beings. Nothing.”

  “Thank you,” Lanvar said. “No further questions.”

  “The court does not wish to cross-examine the witness.” Nefarian gestured toward the desk of the defense. “You may return to your seat.”

  Jonathan teleported to the desk and sat down.

  Well, that went well, he sent McAvoy.

  You’re the only one I know who can convey sarcasm so well through text, the defense counsel replied.

  “The court will now hear the closing arguments,” Captain Nefarian said.

  Already? Jonathan texted McAvoy.

  Yes, McAvoy replied. Welcome to the assembly line nature of the modern-day military court, where thoroughness and diligence are sacrificed in the name of efficiency.

  In Lanvar’s closing argument, the judge advocate once more ranted on about the sanctity of the chain of command. “What has the defense proved, other than Admiral Knox had poor judgment? Did that give Captain Dallas the right to attempt his coup? Can this court dare set such a dangerous precedent, whereby an admiral, an admiral, can nearly be deposed by his subordinates simply because he seems to be making errors in judgment? How can we condone such a reckless disregard for the chain of command?

  “Captain Dallas should have been focusing on the coming battle, not plotting to overthrow the admiral. His reckless actions endangered the whole fleet, and Admiral Knox was well within his rights to have Captain Dallas arrested. It will be a sad miscarriage of justice if we do not see through the original charges levied against the captain by the admiral.

  “Remember well the testimony Captain Dallas has giv
en. In Captain Dallas’ own words, he would have attempted his unruly revolt regardless of whether or not there was a repeal of the order. Even if there were no aliens, and communications were intact, and the mission remained a go, he would have disobeyed a direct order from Navy Central Command. And now he has the gall, the sheer gall, to stand before us in the hope that we will set him free. Do not set this precedent, officers of the navy. Do not. You serve only to open the floodgates for mutiny.”

  McAvoy made his closing argument next.

  “A hundred million human lives,” McAvoy said. “Civilians, mostly. Engineers. Colonists. Government workers. Every last inhabitant of the Tau Ceti system. The United Systems would have been responsible for perpetrating a war crime if that planet killer had been deployed into the star. Not to mention a crime against nature. Destroying a star, and all the planets in her orbit... such a terrible act. But focusing on the war crime aspect alone: we’ve signed interstellar treaties protecting the rights of civilians. If we had lost the war with the Sino-Koreans that would have inevitably followed, the navy senior command would have been tried and convicted. And perhaps our own commander in chief. Jonathan’s actions spared the senior command from that fate, not to mention the economic ruin and loss of life that such a war would have brought to the United Systems. His trial here is needless, put into play purely by politics. Admiral Knox was a powerful man, with many friends higher up in the navy who are absolutely incensed by the failure of the mission, and looking for someone to blame. But that man is not Captain Dallas. He is a hero, and yet we treat him like a criminal.

  “This navy has a history of imprisoning our best. We did it to Admiral Halfor seventy years ago. And we’re going to do it to Captain Jonathan Dallas today. Captain Rail told us something interesting. She said Captain Dallas led the survivors of the fleet through situations that would have made a lesser man blanch. After the admiral fell, Dallas carried the ships under his command through the next several battles. Highly pitched battles, with the odds stacked against them. In her words, the navy cannot afford to lose a man like him. And I agree. He has faced the enemy in the crucible of combat, and he knows how to defeat them. He has even secured an alliance with some of them, and fought aboard one of their vessels. Are we really going to discharge and imprison him? One of our best? Thank you.”