Reporting as Ordered Sir
Posted on Mon Sep 5th, 2022 @ 6:11pm by Captain Marc Kidd & Lieutenant Jonathan Corwin
Edited on on Wed Sep 7th, 2022 @ 6:54am
1,767 words; about a 9 minute read
Mission:
The Hunt Begins
Location: Captain's Ready Room - Deck 3 - USS Artemis
Timeline: MD001 1300 Hrs
Jonathan came onto the bridge and checked to see if the Captain was available and was informed that the Captain was in his ready room. He walked over and chimed the door and awaited a reply before entering. He stood with his transfer order PaDD tucked under his arm and wondered what type of man that Captain Kidd was, and what type of mission he was being assigned to.
One thing that Marc never expected when he took his first command was that his Ready Room door would be a revolving one. However, he hoped that this would be only for the next few days as new crew came aboard and the Senior Staff checked in. He was about to sip a nice cool glass of orange juice when the door chimed for the umpteenth time. "Come on in..." He called to the door and then thought that everyone else does.
Jonathan stepped in the door and presented his Padd to the Captain. " Captain Kidd, I am Lieutenant Jonathan Corwin, JAG Defense lawyer. Here are my transfer orders Sir. I just arrived from Earth about and hour ago and just got my gear put into my quarters. I am reporting for duty Sir. " Jonathan extended his hand. " Umm.. Sir. I was told that I'd be briefed on the assignment once I arrived here, I requested a transfer away from earth and here I am. I've only served on Star Bases so far Captain. What is our mission? "
"Now that is going to take some telling, have a seat." Marc said as he took the PADD. "Johnathan first welcome aboard the Artemis. Our mission is to essentially go where the law needs us. It seems that the Federation as a whole rather likes not knowing that there is still crime in this society. So, when there is a crime we are called in to investigate, arrest, try a case, and house the detained. We are to do all of this without anyone knowing of our true mission." He paused to sip his ever present cup of coffee. "Your job it would seem is to keep us honest."
" Well this is going to be different then my usual stint on a Star Base of trying breaches of Starfleet regulations or petty thieves and smugglers. " He stroked his chin thoughtfully. " As for keeping the system honest Captain, I believe I'm up for the task. I shall do my best to make sure that the process is fair and that justice is served. Most crimes within the federation are treated in a behavioral rehabilitation facility or shipped off to a distant prison world to be forgotten by society. " He thought for a moment. " I have a question for you Captain, Do I have a staff or do I have to recruit my own team? I'm going to need a paralegal and a investigator at the very minimum, two paralegals if the work load is going to be heavy. Some of the law firms and corporations are using robotic multi armed assistants for record keeping and case filings and other duties in the office. "
"There are offices and desks allocated for a staff. However, it was thought best to allow you to fill those roles with whoever you wanted. You will have a paralegal and offices are set up for you to have an investigator to assist you in building your cases. Once you have people in mind send them my way and I will see that they get cleared for transfer. I agree that it is going to be interesting here. We are going to be housing everyone we convict. A whole deck has been dedicated for the prison." With all that was going on Marc rather liked chatting with the lawyer. All business was a refreshing change of pace.
" I can understand us having an entire deck allocated for housing the prisoners that we will be trying, But my main question is what do we do with them afterwards? Do we keep them on the ship until they die or do we turn them over to a federation penal colony? " He asked. " The Luna is an excellent class of ship, but it's not the biggest ship in the fleet. I like the idea of using an Luna class ship as no one would expect it of being a prison ship, good sense and security if you ask me. But how many prisoners will we be able to house? " Jonathan asked.
"We will house them until we can get back to a penal colony to drop them off. We will have the capability to house about two hundred prisoners when filled to capacity. To be honest anyone that is found guilty in our court is most likely staying here until they die. We will only be going after the worst of the worst. It is these crimes that the powers that be would like to keep hidden." Marc replied deadpan. He did not want to conceal the nature of their work, it would be hard enough as it was.
Jonathan frowned slightly and sighed. " Understood Captain. We are to sweep things quietly under the rug and not scare the populace and let them know that there are real monsters out there. Not my preferred way of dealing with things, but if that is our job then I will follow the orders Captain and get the job done. We will quietly slay the monsters while they dream their dreams and unaware of the truth. Most people aren't even aware that there are bad guys out there unless the federation is at war with someone. "
"Too right you are, too right you are. I want you to understand that because of the sweeping under the rug you and your staff are here to keep us honest. I do not want this ship to become a railroad, I want this ship to mete out justice even if it means we have to let some people go. Trials have to be fair and equitable and that is where you come in. I feel like this unit can get pigeon holed into putting people behind bars, if that makes sense." Marc waxed philosophical in his speech. However, he meant what he said, he had argued with Admiral Ford about having defense attorneys aboard the ship and he had won. Now it was time to show the old Admiral why it was important.
" I will discharge my duties in the way you 'd expect me to Captain. If I can show cause or reasonable doubt on behalf of my client that they are innocent and work to clear up any charges that may be outstanding and free a prisoner of a miscarriage of justice, then I shall. However if they are proven guilty, then I will personally lock the cell door and throw away the key. I imagine we won't have to many appeals while we're out here. " Stated Jonathan.
"You imagine correctly. Like I said before this is the absolute last and only stop for most of our inmates. We are going after the worst of the worst, and I can't imagine that is good for a person like you. We do have a Counselor who is also a criminal profiler aboard. If it gets too much dealing with these inmates then please make sure you make use of the Counselor." Marc could tell that he would not have to give the you are a defense attorney first and a Starfleet Officer second speech. The man before him knew his duty and would do it to the best of his ability.
" Is there anything else that I should know about my duties or this mission that we're about to embark upon? " He asked. " Do we have a presiding Judge aboard the ship or how is that going to work? " He thought a moment. " The other thing I'm curious about is the choice of the ship. The Luna Class is a deep space explorer. Do we have enough security personal and armaments to repeal any boarders of the followers of these villians that we'll be collecting? " He asked.
"We have been assigned into the Federation's Fourth District Court. Judge S'vRock of Vulcan presides, although he will not be on the ship. It seems that his court covers a lot of ground so when court is in session he will have a holo presence. The security department is the second largest on the ship, right behind the science department. Augmenting the security is the prison unit, a force dedicated to only securing the prison. The prison has its own independent back up power source, so in theory at least it should never lose power. As to your duties the only addition I would say is to be ready for anything. When you are not needed for court you may be called upon for anything. We are all in unknown waters here and will have to feel our way through." Marc leaned forward on his desk as he spoke. A sign that he was relaxed and that he wanted Corwin to understand all that was said.
Jonathan was silent for several seconds as he thought about what he had just learned. " Very well Captain. I now have a more broad overview of the big picture and have started become more settled into the ship's routine, now that I'm aware of what's going on and what our mission is about. As you stated Sir, we are in uncharted waters. I just hope we have enough compassion and wisdom to guide us in the proper path that justice may be served. "
"There we are agreed Lieutenant... There we are agreed." Marc replied with a smile. "I think for the time being get yourself settled into your quarters and get to know the lay of the land of sorts. If there is nothing else Lieutenant you are dismissed and welcome to the hunt."
Jonathan stood and shook the Captain's hand. Thank you for the mission briefing Sir. I shall strive to do my best to serve this ship and see that justice is served. " with that he stood and turned to walk out the door. Jonathan returned to his quarters to finish unpacking and adjust to his new life aboard this ship.
A Joint Post By
Captain Marc Kidd
Commanding Officer, USS Artemis
Starfleet Criminal Investigations Unit
Lieutenant Jonathan Corwin
Defense Council, USS Artemis
Starfleet Criminal Investigations Unit
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