Consequences

Preface and Synopsis

After the events on Theta Thekare, The Deposed, the Niven returned directly to Starbase 27. Given the nature of the events which had occurred, the mood was heavy. The captain was recovering, albeit slowly, but the remaining senior officers wondered what would become of their decisions. When the Niven docked at the starbase Commander Rodriguez was still in command, and he was met by Rear Admiral, Lower Half, Bram Harmonson and Captain Carl Curtis. He informed him that he and Lt Commander Link had meetings scheduled with Commander Seth Fowler, head of Starfleet JAG at this starbase.

Following these meetings both were assigned counsel from the JAG office, as was captain Koyanagi. It was announced that the case would be prosecuted by Lieutenant Saul Hilgenberg, a well respected officer. Harmonson, as the commanding officer, would chair the board of inquiry and two other high ranking officers, including Donald Hanlon, were recalled to the base to serve.

In a surprising turn of events Lieutenant Commander Ken Bryant arrived and assumed the role of lead defense counsel. He brought with him a staff of three, and they absorbed the already working staff from the previous attorneys. Immediately they went to work preparing their defense.

During their first meeting everyone was surprised when Lieutenant Commander Link failed to appear. Upon further investigation, he had been attacked in his room and was in critical condition. He was immediately transferred to the hospital facility. The lack of testimony from this key witness would shape the entire investigation.

Lieutenant Hilgenberg knew that this would be a tough case to try, and rather than risk losing everything he offered terms to the defense teams to settle the matters. After some intense negotiation, they were able to secure an agreement.

Aftermath

Lieutenant Commander Link is expected to recover fully, though it could take several months. Commander Rodriguez was reassigned to Starbase 17. Captain Tompkins was reassigned to the Orion Diplomatic Envoy, also at Starbase 17. The Niven underwent a full crew reassignment 3 months ahead of schedule and has exchanged much of its complement.

Player Recaps

Captain's Log, Stardate 40260.7

Following the events on Theta Thekare, Commander Rodriguez, Commander Link, and I were under investigation for charges of dereliction of duty, reckless endangerment, and conduct unbecoming of a Starfleet officer. We were assigned Lieutenant Commander Bryant to be our defense attorney and the prosecutor was Lieutenant Saul Hilgenberg.

At 10 am we gathered for our first meeting, however, Link was absent. Given his professional and punctual history, something must have gone wrong. He did not respond on his communicator either. A couple petty officers were sent to his quarters to investigate. They reported, 10 minutes later, that he was badly injured and a medical crew took him to intensive care. We needed to proceed with the inquiry so we continued without him, but I requested updates as conditions changed.

Rodriguez and I were first interviewed by Hilgenberg. Most were standard informational questions, but we were advised not to answer some by Bryant as this was just an informal interview, still in the early stages of the inquiry. We spoke until the point when further questioning was not possible without getting answers to the questions and so we scheduled another meeting the following morning at 10 am. Bryant, Rodriguez, and I scheduled a meeting among ourselves at 6 pm.

Link's progress weighed heavily on my mind, especially after Rodriguez informed me that he was attacked by trauma at close range, about mid-stun. Given his background, it seemed odd that anyone would be able to sneak up on him like that. When I visited the hospital, Link was still in surgery. Lieutenant Hodgkins was in the waiting room. He said he had no where else to go so he wanted to be close by for when Link regained consciousness.

During the meeting with Bryant that night, he stated that a settlement can be achieved without the issue going to court. The conditions were that Link would accept immediate retirement and Rodriguez is to have a captain's mast, lose seniority, and transferred off the ship to a different sector to finish out his career. Given the circumstances, though I cannot say I am thrilled about losing two of my finest senior officers, I am thankful for the outcome of the situation.