—- Court Room 2 —-

The trail was rather sedate. There was a long process of describing the assault on the Bolian ambassador by Captain Shraa and then there was recorded footage of that. Captain Cruz felt that Shraa’s lawyer should be objecting more, but when she thought about it there was very little to object to. Everything was too straight forward. Nobody disagreed on the fundamental facts, just that the Bolian was angry and had a lot of sway and it looked like Shraa was either going to be drummed out of Starfleet or assigned to latrine duty on some far off station.

Finally Cruz stood up and cleared her throat, “May I speak?”

The panel of three judges whispered to each other and then one nodded, “We’ll allow it you are Captain Adriana Cruz are you not?”

”I am yes,” Cruz said and nodded, “Look Shraa is someone who I have fought with, and against my whole career. I’m not going to say she’s never bent a rule, or snuck liquor into Starfleet Academy dorms, and I can’t speak to her whole career. But I can say that at the end of the day there’s nobody I would want on my team more than her. She’s resourceful, clever, determined, and stubborn. Yes, maybe a little rough around the edges, but well she’s an asset to the Fleet and if you lose her it’ll be all of us who are poorer for it.”

”Moving words, thank you Captain Cruz, we’ll file that as a character witness,” the judge said. Then the trial moved on to the last damages, which seemed mostly that the Bolian ambassador said he had nightmares after the walloping. 

The trial moved on and then broke for a recess. Cruz made her way outside and got a coffee and bumped into Shraa’s lawyer, a thin Vulcan who looked in his 50s but was likely older.

”Do you think she has a chance?” Cruz asked him.

”Your testimony was moving, but misplaced. The facts are not the in dispute and she violated protocol,” he said, “She stuck a diplomat and unless you have some evidence that she was under some outside influence, there is not much to add.”

”I don’t think she was,” the Vulcan nodded, “Then we will likely lose. It is too bad I liked her as a captain.“

Cruz shuffled back into the court room where the trial resumed. The judges had conferred and rendered their judgement.

”We find that Captain Shraa of the USS Obama is guilty of assaulting a member of the Starfleet Diplomatic core. However it was pointed out that he expulsion from Starfleet would be a loss. Hence we will be keeping her around. She is formally stripped of her command and demoted to Commander and will be assigned as the first officer aboard the USS Seattle,” the Judge said reading from a document on a PADD, “where we hope Captain Cruz who spoke on her behalf will be able to rehabilitate her career. She may not hold command for five years.”

He continued, “There is also the case of the unanswered ushaan. The Andorian security forces are here to arrest Shraa and we will turn her over to their custody where she will be taken back to Andoria for trial or to fulfill what is required of her.“

Four armed Andorians came forward and the Starfleet officers transferred her to them. They surrounded Shraa and marched her out of the court room. Cruz stood, Shraa was now out of the frying pan and into the fire, as the old expression went.

—- Docking Bay ——

“How soon can we be ready to leave?” Cruz asked Lieutenant Commander James Young who was beneath the warp core adjusting things.

”A week?” he guessed.

”I was thinking like six hours,” Cruz said.

”You gave everyone shore leave for the week and I took out the dilithium crystals. I can be ready in mabye three days,” Young said.

”I need to get to Andoria, I’ve got to save our First Officer,” Cruz said.

”I though he retired to run a brewery,” Young said.

“Winery, but I mean our other First Officer,” Captain Cruz said.

”We have the Nirvana, it’s not as fast as the ship, but it can get you to Andoria,” Young said.

”Where are we going?” Lieutenant Claudia Jara the Chief of Security asked.

”I’m going to Andoria to get our XO,” Cruz said.

”Okay, I’m coming. Station’s too safe for my taste,” Jara said.

”What ever you do can you please do it somewhere else, I’m trying to focus,” Young said.

Cruz went towards her quarters to pack, “Fine, grab a bag I’ll meet you at the Nirvana. We’ll leave in an hour.”

When the got to the Waverider shuttle she found Lieutenant Pr’Nor and Lieutenant Commander Tashai had also joined them. 

“I am your pilot,” Pr’Nor said, “I can get there faster than you.”

Tashai added, “And I’ve never been to Andoria, should be fun.”

”Well we’re going for a fight to the death,” Cruz said.

”Sounds delightful,” Tashai said, “And humans do dumb things too. Lighten up Captain, think of this as a vacation. To an ice moon.”

”I brought some of the old Commander’s stock of wine,” Jara said, “So it’ll be fun.”

”Alright, fine. I can already see the longer we wait here the bigger this away team will get. Pr’Nor take us to Andoria. Jara, did you pack a coat none of you did did you. Okay start replicating coats Tashai, and let’s start learning Andorian law,” Cruz said giving in to her crew. 

Out of the frying pan and into the fire.