“Does anyone have any idea how the public is handing this hearing and what their feelings are about it?” I asked.
“We can turn on the vid screen and see the news. It should be on right now,” Kala answered.
Jenira, having heard Kala’s comment about the news, activated the vid screen where images of the day’s hearing were being played as a commentator interjected observations. The scene playing at that moment was at the point where I really was getting frustrated with Leader Roritat’s inferences and accusations.
“And you allied yourself with the androids and the Ruwallie Rasson while you were there, to establish a small army that you could use to take over other worlds,” Leader Roritat accused.
I exploded, “Right, I took over all the businesses, put everyone out of business and raped and pillaged the planet and set myself up as King!” The camera recording the event zoomed in on the truth indicator; it could be seen turning bright red and subdued laughs could be heard from about the hall. The screen went into a split image showing an odd angle view of Justice Mastoeth’s face with his head bent down as he tries to suppress a grin before lifting his face and saying, “First Citizen, I realize your frustration in these questions, but please keep yourself to the truth and not sarcastic false statements to prove your point.”
“I’m sorry Your Honor, I won’t let it happen again.” I can be heard replying as the camera view shifted to show a red faced and angry Roritat as the commentator added, “This was the only incident during the hearing where the truth indicator displayed that the First Citizen had testified untruthfully in any way under testimony, but by doing so he clearly showed that none of the accusations and implications being made by Leader Roritat regarding events at Goo’Waddle were worthy of the charges being made against the First Citizen.
“People throughout the Capitol have been shocked by the hearing. Leader Roritat has been making very serious accusations about the First Citizen since his five year term rotation has brought him to Megelleon for service here. Most of the citizens who were here when Tibby and his crew rescued the DUSTEN and who had friends and relatives aboard the ship recall how it was, and Leader Roritat’s comments have seemed strangely out of line with what was actually experienced. We interviewed a number of people on the street to get their reactions to today’ hearing and here is what they have to say.” The screen shot changed to a street scene where reporter Cleainsta was interviewing a male citizen.
“Sir, could you state your name and tell us your opinion of the hearing of the First Citizen today?” Cleainsta asked.
“Ahh, yeah, my name is Josay, and I don’t get what all the fuss is about. First Citizen Tibby has never done anything but try to help us from what I can see, why the Leader is trying to make Tibby look bad only weakens us and doesn’t help anything. We need to be building up forces to face the challenge the Brotherhood is presenting, and Leader Roritat is wasting the Senate’s time by delaying them from acting on what’s really important. What’s Leader Roritat have against Tibby anyway? So far as I know, the Leader never met Tibby before today.”
“I see, well thank you for your thoughts. Excuse me, miss,” Cleainsta said to a passing young woman, “could we have a minute of your time and get you to comment on today’s senate hearing of First Citizen Thibodaux James Renwalt?”
“Yeah, sure I guess,” the young woman replied.
“Could you state your name and tell us your opinion of the hearing?” Cleainsta asked.
“My name is Seleonese, and I’m really not sure why they are having this hearing. I mean, what has First Citizen Tibby done wrong? I hear everything Leader Roritat is saying, but none of it makes any sense to me and the way he defends the Brotherhood. My brother was one of the ones dumped into space and killed by the Brotherhood and this universe won’t be safe until every last one of the Brotherhood is eradicated. If Tibby did anything wrong, it was in asking for amnesty for a lot of the Brotherhood which surrendered after the DUSTIN was freed from their control. All that Roritat is doing with his trial is making himself look like a fool.”
The camera switched back to Cleainsta as she continued talking. “These are the kinds of comments we have been getting consistently ever since the hearing ended for the day. Whatever Leader Roritat’s intentions were in trying to have charges filed against First Citizen Tibby is not developing in the direction he wanted.”
“There, Tibby," Admiral Regeny spoke up., "you see, you have nothing to worry about. I suspect that tomorrow things will go very quickly, this hearing will be over, and no harm will be done by it.”
“I’m not so sure, Admiral,” Senator Tonclin said, "the hearing may be over quickly but Leader Roritat seems to have more than one agenda in mind with this hearing, one of which seems to be to reduce our military. He appears to be of the opinion that if we reduce our military that we will also reduce hostilities against us, and from that stand point he may be winning. There are many in the Senate who believe that our military strength is creating enemies with groups like the Brotherhood and other worlds as well.”
“If what we have witnessed and encountered in the past few months is any indication, I interjected, "you will need all the ships and men you can muster, because the Brotherhood is amassing several large fleets in different areas outside the Federation with the full intent of attacking from multiple locations at the same time. They know the Federation fleet doesn’t have enough ships to patrol and guard one million worlds and hope to whittle us down a piece at a time. This new ally they have, the Tottalax and their ship give us something to fight that we have no defense against, at the moment, and we’re easy pickings for them until we do.”
“I understand, Tibby, I have tried my best to get the Senate committed for Federation defense to see it, but half of them seem to think we should turn all our starships into luxury cruisers and disband the military altogether. The other half wants us to expand our capabilities and defenses, but neither side has enough votes to carry forward. It’s a stalemate at the moment.”
The Admiral and Senator Tonclin didn’t stay long. After assuring me that their testimonies in the morning would answer any doubts the Senate might have about me, they said their goodbyes and departed. The suite I was provided had two spare rooms in it, Jenira claimed one for herself, and after giving Kala and me hugs, she sealed herself in her room for the night.
Kala and I lay on the large bed in our room; a fire in the gas fireplace gave the room a warm orange glow as I gently rubbed the bare bulge of her abdomen, feeling the occasional kick of the twins.
“Do you think they talk to each other in there?” I asked Kala right after feeling two strong kicks.
I heard her chuckle before replying, “I think sometimes they are, and like any siblings I think they are fighting at times as well.”
“What do you think they talk about?" I asked as I traced a finger around her navel.
“Probably the exploits of their father and how once they get here they will keep him busy so he stays out of trouble,” she said with a grin.
“Well I certainly hope they can keep me out of trouble. I’m honestly getting tired of it all.” I sighed and then continued, “Kala, am I crazy? It seems to me like Roritat is more inclined to see the Federation destroyed than to see it strong and survive.”
Kala got a serious look on her face and paused a moment before replying. “Tib I don’t know. I think Roritat is one of those people with an over-simplified view of life; it scares me to think that he was elected to the office with such a naive view of the Federation and how it works. There are many in the Federation who believe that just because you say you want peace there will be peace and that no enemies will rise against you. They assume the only reason there are bad people is because someone treats them like a bad person, they fail to recognize that there are some people who will be bad regardless. I fear that Roritat is one of those. He seems to be of the opinion that things will happen just because he says they will and that nothing more than his wo
rd is required for things to take place. If he says peace there will be peace, and if he says the Brotherhood is good, they will be good simply because he says so.”
“So you are saying Roritat wants me to be bad and that’s why he treats me this way?” I said in a teasing tone.
Kala threw her head back and laughed before suddenly getting serious and saying, “In some ways, yes. Men like Roritat need people to put the blame on when their ideas don’t work. He needs some reason that the Brotherhood isn’t conforming to his ideas, and that reason is you. Roritat can blame you; he will never admit he was wrong. He will only look for people to blame when his edicts don’t work out.”
“Hmm, I don’t know,” I said, “you may be right, but I can’t help but feel that he genuinely hates me, I think he has more in mind than just me in what he is doing.”
Kala slid over on the bed and snuggled up to me with her head on my shoulder, we laid there in silence watching the flames in the fire place. I was about to ask her what had happened at the estate when she learned I had been taken into custody by Roritat’s troopers, when I heard her heavy breathing and realized she was asleep.
I expected that I would experience a troubled sleep that night, filled with disturbing dreams, but I only had one and that was of two small children of about four years of age. One was a girl with golden locks of hair and the other a boy with dark hair and a darker complexion; the two of them were standing at my bed side saying, “Wake up daddy, it’s time for you to wake up.” I woke to find myself alone in bed with daylight entering through the windows and a view of the Capitol spread out before me as the sun was rising. I started to roll out of the bed when I heard the sound of Kala humming in the bath area; a moment later she entered the room and appeared startled to see I was up. “Oh, you’re awake! I hope I didn’t wake you.”
“I don’t think you did,” I said. “I think it’s just time for me to get up. How much longer do I have before I appear before the Senate again?”
“About an hour I think; what would you like to eat before you go? We can have food brought to us here, but I think it might be quicker and better to rely on the food synthesizer in the other room.”
“I think some foccee and some kind of pastry will do for now. The Senate guards fed me very well yesterday, and I still feel full. I don’t want to be uncomfortable during the trial; imagine what Roritat might try to accuse me of if I were I to belch during testimony!”
“Right, I’ve heard you belch, and it sounds like enraged ventarian on the rampage.” I had to laugh, for even though I had never seen a ventarian, I knew from the learning headband that it was a creature much like an elephant of Earth, only smaller, with ears like an Earth’s mule, but it did have a long trunk like appendage.
“What should I wear to the hearing? I wasn’t sure if my attire yesterday was right or not and I took a guess,” I asked.
“You made a good choice I think, but I think for today you should wear a full dignitary cut suit in black. Yesterday you were on the defensive, but today you need to exude an element of power and mystery.”
“I still think those outfits make me look like a villain from an old James Bond movie!” I said.
“James Bond?” Kala asked.
“It’s a long story, perhaps once this trial is over, I’ll pull up some of the entertainment vids from the data cubes the Earth refugees brought with them so you can see one. His vids are awesome!
“He performs some sort of act?”
I smiled. “He’s a fictional spy/thriller/action hero in entertainment vids of old Earth,” I answered.
“Oh, sort of like you then?” Kala said teasingly.
“Yeah sort of,” I said mocking her, “only I’m much better looking.” Kala looked at me and shook her head.
By now, we had moved from the bedroom and into the main room of the suite. Jenira was seated cross-legged on a cushion in front of the vid screen where news broadcasts from the preceding day played while she ate a bowl of food I assumed she received from the synthesizer.
“Good morning, Jenira,” Kala said to her.
Jenira looked at us, her bulging cheeks stuffed full of whatever she was eating. She set her bowl down for a moment and waved a friendly hello and then returned to eating and watching the vid screen. It struck me funny how in so many ways she was like a typical Earth teen one moment and at the same time an enigmatic warrior. Kala and I were eating when part of the new broadcast caught my attention. The newscaster was saying. “…no one is sure where Leader Roritat is, he was last seen shortly after the Senate hearing with a number of senators. Reporters tried to approach him to get comments regarding the day’s hearing, but he refused to talk with them and boarded a large surface transport and went to an unknown destination. It is expected that he will be present in an adjacent viewing room at the hearing today to watch the proceedings and prepare questions for his second round of questioning, but so far today there has been no sign of him or the Senators with him.”
“What do you think he is up to,” Kala asked?
“You’re asking the wrong person,” I said’
Suddenly, Jenira popped up and started signing, “I know, he’s running away after totally embarrassing himself yesterday.” Both Kala and I laughed at the look on her face as she seemed so serious.
“Would but that were true,” I said, "but somehow I doubt that is the reason.”
It was about 30 minutes later when the Senate guards arrived to escort me to the hearing room. Kala and Jenira were not allowed to accompany me; however, they would be in the hearing room occupying the same box that was used the day before by my accusers. Admiral Regeny, Senator Tonclin, Commander Wabussie (who still was not present), and any others who might be called to testify on my behalf would also be seated in that box. I was not sure why Jenira was there, but it seems that it was decided to include her in with those testifying on my behalf by someone. I knew from what the Senate guards told me that not everyone in the box would necessarily provide testimony and that some of them were there strictly to assist those who would be providing testimony. I more or less assumed that would be the case with Jenira and Kala. Lastly, I saw Regata, and it surprised me, but then I realized that Kala may have requested him to come and give an account of things that had happened on Alle Bamma from the natives' perspective.
Once Justice Mastoeth had called the session to order, he announced that the defense testimony portion of the hearing was begun; he then turned things over to Senator Tonclin, who would be leading the testimony portion of my hearing. Senator Tonclin was in full formal senator attire and even with his strange wood-like textured skin and high-pitched voice, he still presented a grand image at the podium and on the vid screens. Unlike my accusers, all of those providing testimonies on my behalf would be monitored for their truth; the truth indicator bar would display on the vid screens around the hearing hall for all to see.
“Justice Mastoeth, and fellow members of the Senate,” Senator Tonclin began, “Today we are assembled here, to decide if there is sufficient evidence for First Citizen Thibodaux James Renwalt to be charged with crimes against the Federation and against sentient life forms. That these accusations were ever brought against the First Citizen is a true amazement to me in light of all that this man has done for the Federation in the short time since he arrived. A few years ago we were heaping honors on him and claiming him a hero and today we are here determining if he should face charges for the most heinous crimes, for which no evidence has been presented. We are being asked to believe that the Brotherhood of Light was, and is, a kind and benevolent organization that only appears evil because of First Citizen Thibodaux James Renwalt.
“I am not going to regale you with the events that took place when First Citizen Thibodaux James Renwalt arrived in the Federation with the long-lost TRITYTE and its solbidyum cargo, nor of the heroic actions he and his crew executed to get the solbidyum safely to the Capitol. All of these things are a matter of historical record, and most of
us were here to see and experience the things that happened. We witnessed Commander Thimas ranting on our vid screens saying with his very first words, “This is Captain Thimas of the BROTHERHOOD OF LIGHT aboard the ship DUSTEN,” clearly making a proclamation that the actions taking place were of the Brotherhood of Light. I do not recall, nor do the historical records show, of ANY members of the Brotherhood of Light standing up at that time, nor at any time since, that I am aware of, or saying Thimas spoke out of turn, and he did not represent the Brotherhood of Light. Instead thousands of Brotherhood members seemed to rally around him, supporting him in his actions. Leader Roritat and his fellow accusers would have us believe that somehow after a few short weeks in the Federation that the actions of First Citizen Thibodaux James Renwalt was responsible for the Brotherhood’s actions. It’s preposterous to believe that in a matter of a few days a fraternal group could quickly organize a military unit to accomplish the feats they did; clearly they had to exist long before the arrival of First Citizen Thibodaux James Renwalt.
"Yesterday we heard Leader Roritat make statements implying that First Citizen Thibodaux James Renwalt tried to steal a prototype ship under development on the planet Gaimse, we heard First Citizen Thibodaux James Renwalt’s testimony that this ship was his, that the design was his and that the ship in question had been stolen by the Brotherhood and taken outside the Federation to the planet Gaimse, to be reverse-engineered, so more of these ships could be built for the Brotherhood in their plans to take over the Federation. We all witnessed that The First Citizen’s testimony was truthfully told by him, but I am here today to provide further testimony of the truth of his statement.
“My planet, Nibaria, which I am proud to be the senator, is the planet where his ship the NEW ORLEANS was built. The ship was originally commissioned by industrialist Galetils who died shortly before its completion. Nibaria was on the edge of economic ruin because we had a huge investment in the ship, and with Galetils dead, we had no one to pay for the outstanding balance on the ship. I approached First Citizen Thibodaux James Renwalt who was now one of the few people with enough money to buy the ship in hopes that he might want it and thus rescue our planet from economic disaster. Obviously he did, since we are sitting here today discussing events surrounding Tibby and his ships.
Solbidyum Wars Saga 4: Too Late for Earth Page 34