There was the order from Earth Command for his forced vasectomy. Mason looked at her with his mouth open. “They neutered me, without my knowledge? Without my permission? How could they do that?”
“They did it because a few of the Joint Chiefs thought your ability to procreate was a danger to the human race. I refused to have anything to do with implementing that order, John. It was done by the doctor on Titan One in their sick bay. Not my staff. I felt you should know. They would never have revealed it to you, I’m sure.” She placed her hand on his head, and stroked him. He got up on his knees and touched her face.
“Does that affect you and me, ma’am? You know what I mean,” he asked her.
“No, I have a child, John,” she said, and kissed his hand. “They may try to threaten you with the procedure tomorrow, to gain your cooperation. But, now you know, and this will have no influence on your testimony.”
“Thank you.” He finished reading the report, and handed the com tablet to her. She recalled him playing with the children at Victor’s party yesterday. She knew he loved children; she thought he would make a good stepfather to Victor. But the deed was already done.
“Did you see my body when you began my procedures, ma’am?” He asked her quietly. “Did you see my tail?”
“Yes, John. It was necessary to measure the procedures’ effectiveness. All areas of your body were measured and monitored to ascertain your treatment progress,” she answered flatly.
“So, you’ve seen me naked, Dr. Baines. You’d seen most of me before anyway, on the Hesperia. You patched me up often enough,” he smiled at her. “It just seems inequitable.”
“I was your nurse, and now I am your genetics specialist, John,” she softly said, petting his head and neck. “It’s okay.”
She slept in his bed again, same as before, both of them clothed. They rose early so everyone could get ready to go. They left her house right at seven, walked to the tram, and boarded for the twenty minute trip. Mason watched the main city of Houston in the distance as the tram sped towards Earth Command Central base. They walked through the main gate, on to her Medical Research building, and dropped Victor off for his day care. Her building was three kilometers from where he needed to report, the Main Command and Control Complex.
“I’ll take you to your building, John. It’s a little confusing the first couple of times you go there,” she offered. They hopped onto the moving walkway and strolled along, Mason checking out all the buildings in the two campuses. The research complex featured buildings with more eclectic architectural designs than the Command and Control Complex. Those were traditional buildings, heavy and overpowering with their stone and brick construction. Mason saw they resembled the Roman buildings from long ago, like the old millennial capitals did. Building strength did not equate to endurance of an empire, he thought.
They hopped off the moving walkway in front of the biggest building, an imposing structure over twenty-five stories tall, and several blocks long. She escorted him through the front doors, and went to the desk. She put on her holographic ID badge, and brought Mason to the counter. They had his badge ready for him. They needed his palm print and retinal scan to securely identify him, and he was good to go.
“Now is where the confusion begins, John,” she said, walking straight towards the lifts. “Some are horizontal—those coded green. Others are vertical—the blue ones. The red ones are for the top three floors, where we are headed now.” Inside the lift, her wrist comm-link beeped. “Looks like they’ve seen me bring you. I’ve been summoned at 10:30a.m., ahead of you.”
“Why?” He asked, curiously.
“I’ll find out when I get there,” she said. “They don’t usually tip their hand. Remember that, John,” she said, in a serious tone of voice.
They got off the lift on the 24th floor. They went through security again, and down the corridor. He smelled coffee. “How about a coffee, Dr. Baines? My treat, ma’am.”
She took him to the coffee bistro, and Mason noticed, “There’s Captain Hanson! Have you met her, ma’am?”
“No, but I’d like to, John. Please introduce us, if you would.”
Captain Hanson’s face lit up upon seeing Mason coming towards her. He stopped and saluted her, and introduced Dr. Baines to her.
“I’m thrilled to meet you, Dr. Baines. Mason has told me so much about you and the Admiral. We cannot thank you enough,” she said with genuine sincerity.
“I’ll get coffees for all of us,” Mason said, as the two Captains sat down to talk with each other. He returned with their drinks, and pastries. “Dr. Baines, café au lait and a croissant; Captain Hanson, a vanilla latte with cinnamon, and a slice of pound cake; and my mocha latte.”
“Perfect, Master Gunny,” Dr. Baines said, smiling.
“He knows my habits better than I do,” Captain Hanson admitted.
They all made pleasant conversation while they enjoyed their coffees and sweets. Mason watched both women talking: the woman he loved and wanted to be with, and his former Captain, with whom he’d had an affair in their tiny escape pod. Mason secretly feared Dr. Baines would spurn him if she discovered his affair with Captain Hanson, escape pod, or not.
Looking at her comm link for the time, Dr. Baines stood to take her leave. “They summoned me as I was bringing this Prime Marine up to the 24th floor. It was very nice to have met you at last, Captain Hanson. Perhaps we can have lunch together sometime,” she cordially said. Mason stood and saluted her; she returned his salute and walked down the corridor.
“She’s so easy to talk with, John. A very pleasant woman, indeed,” she said, smiling at him. “Does she know?”
“No. I haven’t told anyone, Captain,” Mason said.
“My inside source says they think you’re hiding some important information from them. If you are asked, you have to reveal us, John. They won’t take your silence lightly. We’re nearly home free, remember.”
“But what will they do to you, Captain? Stick you behind some desk in a shit-hole until doomsday? They’ll never understand, ma’am,” he protested.
“Just tell them the truth, Master Gunny. The truth and only the truth. It’s our only way out of this mess,” she said in a firm voice.
“I thought we were fully reinstated.”
“We have been. They gave us our lives back. Now, they want the pieces of information we withheld. Don’t make a mistake here, John. Just tell the truth,” she repeated. They left down the same corridor Dr. Baines walked down a few minutes ago. At 11:00a.m. precisely, a Space Marine came for them.
Four of the six Joint Chiefs were present, seated behind a very long table, highly elevated above them: Admiral Wilson, URE Navy; General Ling, URE Army; General Moshe, URE Air Force; and Admiral Kensington, URE Space Forces. Mason followed Captain Hanson inside. They stopped at a white line on the floor and saluted. The Joint Chiefs did not stand, but returned their salutes. Only half of the great hall was lit.
The formal proceedings began, with the Captain and Mason at attention. Their names, ranks and identification numbers were read into the record. They were asked if they would fully and completely cooperate by giving their sworn testimony; they each agreed. The lights came on from the rear of the room, as two special chairs silently moved towards Hanson and Mason.
“I am Admiral Wilson and I will be conducting your interviews today. You will please remove your uniform jackets and shoes and boots, and hand them to the attending Space Marines.” They did what they were told. “Please sit. Your chairs have electronic sensors on the arms and several other locations. We will apply restraints to you now.” Two more Space Marines came up and fastened sensor-loaded restraints on their forearms, calves, and chests. A brainwave analyzer was fastened around their heads directly across their foreheads.
“We will read your statements and then ask questions to ascertain what information you can provide to fill these gaps in your statements,” he announced. Mason sat still listening, as did Captain Hanson. “You
each provided no answer to the following question, and you must do so now: Did you, John Mason, engage in sexual relations with your Commanding Officer, Captain Esther Hanson?” Mason did not answer.
“Did you, John Mason, rape your CO, Captain Esther Hanson?” No answer.
“Did you, John Mason, sodomize your CO, Captain Esther Hanson?” No answer.
“Did you, John Mason, forcibly commit acts of a sexual nature on your CO, Captain Esther Hanson?” Mason was silent.
“Master Gunnery Sergeant Mason, you agreed to answer all of our questions, yet you sit there in silence. I must warn you that failure to answer these questions will result in your immediate incarceration,” the Admiral threatened.
“Did you, John Mason, rape and sodomize your Commanding Officer, Captain Esther Hanson?” Silence.
“Master Gunny, answer the Admiral’s questions,” Captain Hanson said. Silence. “Master Gunnery Sergeant John Mason, I order you to answer the Admiral’s questions NOW!” Captain Hanson bellowed.
“Yes, ma’am. I will answer.” Mason sighed heavily.
The Admiral resumed questioning. “Did you rape Captain Hanson?”
“No, sir.”
“Did you sodomize Captain Hanson?”
“No, sir.”
“Did you forcibly commit sexual acts upon Captain Hanson, John Mason?”
“Sir, no sir.”
The Admiral yelled at him, “Then, how do you explain your semen and her body fluids coming to be found on the bathing towels, floor and seats of the escape pod?”
“I never forced Captain Hanson to have sexual relations. I never raped her. I never sodomized her, sir,” Mason said matter-of-factly.
Wilson shouted, “Are you saying your Commanding Officer agreed to consensual sex with you, an enlisted man, John Mason?”
“Not quite, Admiral. Sir.”
“Then what took place in that escape pod, John Mason?” The Admiral yelled again.
“She took me, sir.” Mason sat very still. “She was the aggressor, Admiral, sir.”
Admiral Wilson stood. “This is a very serious charge, John Mason. Are you accusing your Commanding Officer, Captain Esther Hanson, of initiating sex with you? Of fraternizing with an enlisted man?”
“I am not accusing her of anything, Admiral, with all due respect. You don’t understand, sir. You weren’t there in that tiny pod for days, drugged, damaged and altered. Begging the Admiral’s pardon, sir, but it was not as it sounds. Sir!” Mason cried.
“Then you’d better make us understand, or you will be on the transport to Mars Penal Colony this very day, John Mason.” The Admiral sat down.
Mason told them of taking her away from the nurse droids, how she could not walk, and how he carried her to the pod. How she slept for a day, drugged and altered. He told them the extent of his own alteration and transformation. He relayed the details of their four days in some detail, but not all:
“We were trying to escape our torture for three months, the beatings, the altering of our very cellular structure. We had no one looking for us. No one! No one offering any aid or the slightest comforts. No dignity. No respect. Forced to hang naked like meat for days without food or sleep, in the pitch black, in the cold. Fed one food pouch a day for months. Beaten daily until we passed out. Sodomized with 10,000 volt hot sticks, our genitalia clamped with clips to shock and burn us with excruciating pain, until I had no feeling anywhere for weeks.”
“We cooperated fully, yet were treated this way. I found Captain Hanson with the other bridge officers, recorded the scene, and sent an encoded message to Admiral Baines, my only hope. I was still sworn to Captain Hanson, and I honored my Prime Marine oath to protect her. I got us into that tiny pod and jettisoned us into the blackness of space. I set a course for Mars, knowing full well there was no way to reach it.” He continued:
“Captain Hanson slept an entire day, she was so drugged and weak. I lay on the floor to try to stretch out, and she lay next to me so I could protect her. We were one step away from death. She took me, and I did not deny her. Sir!” Mason’s eyes were enflamed with emotion.
Captain Hanson sat still as a statue, looking straight ahead.
“Who beat and tortured you?” Admiral Wilson asked.
Mason answered, “I do not know their names. They wore Space Forces uniforms, sir.”
Wilson asked, “Even the specialists?”
“Yes, sir. They were in uniform too. Except when they got too hot from enjoying themselves,” Mason said bitterly.
The Admirals and Generals were silent for a while. Admiral Wilson asked, “Captain Hanson, do you concur with Master Gunnery Sergeant Mason’s accounting of the events leading up to as well as having taken place in your escape pod?”
She took a deep breath, “Yes, with the only difference being my torture. I was raped and sodomized by the specialists repeatedly.”
“With the hot sticks?” He asked quietly.
“They raped me and sodomized me with their own penises. When they were too tired, they used the hot sticks, sir.” Her eyes became red.
Wilson asked delicately, “How long did this go on for you, Captain Hanson?”
“Two months and twenty-seven days, sir.” She was rigid, unmoving.
“And you have no recollection of the next three weeks, or being moved to the Alexandria?” Admiral Wilson probed.
“No sir. The first thing I remembered was waking up in the pod with Mason, sir.”
After a pause, he asked, “Captain Hanson, did you initiate sex with John Mason?”
“I did, yes, sir.” She looked straight ahead, and spoke evenly.
“Why? Why risk it?” He asked.
“Mason was the only man I trusted for a year on the Esmeralda. He always had my back. He was the only one who helped me. No one was searching for us, no one else cared. NO ONE! We were abandoned. He chose to take me away, to escape with him. He did not leave me behind. We were so close to death, Admiral, we had no hope. I wanted to thank him for protecting me, for not leaving me behind.” She looked forward, never flinching, her eyes red as could be without crying. All was silent for several minutes.
“We will adjourn for one hour. You are to remain here,” the Admiral said, and they all left the room, leaving Mason and Captain Hanson restrained in their chairs.
They were silent for a half hour, and then Mason spoke, “I just spent the best weekend of my life, these last three days. I will always treasure it.” He never expected to see Dr. Baines again. He should have made love to her; then he could have savored her love and memory while in prison for the rest of his life, he thought to himself.
Captain Hanson said, “I enjoyed these last three weeks, and will treasure them, too, John. Thank you for telling them the truth.” She could not look upon him, for fear of crying.
“It was none of their business, ma’am.” He was afraid to look at her, too. Their souls were exposed to strangers, some of whom wished to punish him for the rest of his life for speaking the truth. He could almost feel the shackle around his neck again.
“They think it was, John. And now they know.” The bastards, she thought. Just do it. They will punish me by forcing me out, and punish John in prison forever, an honest, courageous man; a hero. We should have died together in each other’s arms, happy and fulfilled.
“It was an honor to serve you, Captain Hanson,” Mason choked out.
“The honor and thanks are mine, John Mason. I am privileged to know you.” She would not let the bastards have the fun of seeing her cry; she would go with pride, and honor.
They sat again in silence until the Joint Chiefs returned, and this time all six of the Joint Chiefs entered and sat down; Admiral Worthington and the Commandant joined them.
“Release Captain Hanson and Master Gunnery Sergeant Mason at once. Give them their shoes and boots and their uniform jackets,” Admiral Worthington ordered. They dressed and stood stiffly at attention, awaiting their fates. He spoke firmly:
“Capt
ain Esther Hanson, your sworn testimony has been accepted by this ruling body. Recently you were exonerated and cleared of all charges. That decision has been reaffirmed today. You are to report to the hospital for medical evaluation and counseling for post-traumatic shock, as a result of your torture and beatings by persons unknown, masquerading as Space Forces officers. You have our most sincere apologies for your recent ordeal.”
“Master Gunnery Sergeant John Mason, your sworn testimony has been accepted by this ruling body. You were recently exonerated and cleared of all charges, and a formal apology delivered by this body to you. That decision has been reaffirmed today. You are to report to Officer Candidate School in Quantico, Virginia, this Friday at 0-seven hundred hours. Upon your graduation from OCS, you are to serve as Special Liaison Officer for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, this ruling body.” He paused, and then continued.
“Both of your records will have today’s testimony expunged, as of tomorrow. You have my most sincere apology for the recent ordeals you have suffered and endured. You both are to be congratulated for your frank and open testimony here today.” Admiral Worthington stood, and then said, “You are both dismissed.”
Mason left quickly with Captain Hanson. They stopped outside, and Mason saluted her. She returned his salute, and both walked off in opposite directions, eyes blazing with tears.
Mason walked all the way to Dr. Baines’ home. He hoped she wouldn’t ask him any questions about today. She was not home yet, so Mason went to the Catholic Church where they went to Mass. Was it only yesterday?
He kneeled down to pray in one of the middle pews. He stayed there until it got dark, praying, giving his thanks to God, and meditating. Then he left to see if Dr. Baines was home yet. Her house lights were on.
He knocked on her door, and she opened it for him. “I thought you and Captain Hanson would be celebrating tonight, John,” she said, smiling a little. He looked very different to her; defeated and dejected. She expected to see him victorious, and in a celebratory mood.
“Nothing to celebrate, Dr. Baines. Nothing at all,” he confessed.
Vengeance of Sukesh: John Mason (Legend of John Mason) Page 9
