“All of which brings me back to freedom of speech. The rules that apply to civilian free speech are different from those that apply to military personnel. The rules regarding classified materials are a prime example. There is another example deserving of discussion.”
David looked at a note he had written on a legal pad on the table. “Article 117 of the UCMJ refers to provoking or reproachful words or gestures used by one member of the Federation Armed Forces against another. This is not a crime for a civilian. It is a crime for a member of the Armed Forces. Once a person passes through the front gate of this installation, they are under military authority. Any person employed by or in service to the Armed Forces is subject to the rules of the armed forces. There are large signs posted at each entrance to this installation to that effect. Since access to this installation is controlled and persons entering the property are properly notified, free speech can be abridged in the same manner as the owner of a theater can abridge free speech. Under the terms of the Supreme Court decision handed down almost a year ago, the harassment and verbal abuse to which the non-evangelical students on this installation have been subject to since the beginning of this academic year is illegal under the UCMJ.”
David paused dramatically. “Failure to properly enforce the UCMJ is itself a crime. Therefore it is incumbent on the authorities of this installation to enforce the UCMJ and stop the harassment that is currently occurring at this installation. Further, under the principle of equal protection under the law, if Cadet Solomon is convicted, so must all the people who have disturbed Academy classes with their outbursts. With all due respect, you have no choice but to find Cadet Solomon innocent of all charges. Thank you for your attention.”
David gingerly sat behind the table next to Commodore McGuire His hands and arms were tingling with tension. He slowly allowed his breathing to return to normal.
Commodore McGuire rose. “I have no further comments.”
The prosecutor rose. “I have no further comments.”
“Court will recess for one hour.”
Commodore McGuire leaned over to David and said, “Nicely done. There were a couple of gaps in your logic, but they should not cause us a problem.” He turned to Rachel, “You have excellent friends. Cherish them always.”
Rachel smiled, “I do, sir.”
Commodore McGuire turned back to David, “The process of law is as rigidly logical as any of the sciences. These old knees of mine have been sitting too long, why don’t we walk and I can see if I can’t recruit you for legal?” They stood and left Rachel sitting alone in the silent court room.
Wendy somehow knew Rachel wished to be left alone and herded everyone else away. Rachel sat quietly at the table alone with her thoughts until the court reconvened.
Commodore Singh read the court’s decision. “We find Cadet Solomon innocent of the charges as presented, however, we find her guilty of the lesser charge of being disrespectful to a superior officer. Therefore, we pronounce the following sentence. Cadet Solomon will lose all second year privileges until the end of this term at which time she will be restored to her normal status. Further, in lieu of hard labor, Cadet Solomon will prepare a report, properly researched, documented and footnoted on the history of the battleship from the time of the Spanish Armada to the present. She will further extrapolate the future of the battleship in the current environment based on this research. Six copies of this report will be delivered to my office no later than 0900 hours on the first day of final exams. The report will be presented in hard copy and with a data module attached to each one. At 0900 on the day following the last day of exams or as soon thereafter as other business in this room will permit, Cadet Solomon will orally summarize her report and defend it before a panel of my choice. If the panel accepts her report, all record of this proceeding will be expunged from her record. Cadet Solomon, please stand. You have the option of accepting this judgment or requesting a formal courts marshal. What is your choice?”
“I accept the judgment as presented, sir.”
“Commodore McGuire, please have your client sign the documentation.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Court is adjourned.”
Within hours of the court’s decision, the Security Police began arresting cadets who verbally accosted other cadets. They were charged under Article 117 and their punishments were quickly meted out. Within a few weeks, a quarter of the Academy’s student body was serving some form of punishment for offenses under Article 117. The evangelical organizations protested in the public media and in their captive information outlets. Their protests quickly died down when the newly appointed Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff suggested that continued or persistent interference with the training of Federation officers or enlisted personnel might be considered treason or at the very least sedition. He speculated in one news interview that it would only take a couple of executions for treason to resolve the issue. He stated that he had requested a ruling from the Judge Advocate General’s office to determine at what point such interference might be considered a chargeable offense.
The new Chairman of the Joint Chiefs was far more willing to wage war in the media than his predecessor had been. He was often seen on talk shows and was quoted more in his first month in office than his predecessor had been in his entire term. One of his goals appeared to be avoiding a shooting war with the Swordsmen by engaging in a shouting war. He acknowledged that no Swordsman had been charged with treason for their military activities even though the attacks on Homestead, Eretz and a host of other defenseless planets warranted such charges. He blamed that fact on a gap in the Federation charter which he intended to close. He made clear that anyone who fired on a Federation military vessel would either be an enemy combatant subject to the Geneva Convention or a traitor subject to the Federation charter. He stated that even though the Swordsman forces appeared to be separate and independent planetary defense organizations, he recognized their common command structure. Given that consistency of command, he would treat any military conquest of any planet or any portion of any planet by the Swordsman forces to be an attack against the Federation itself. The fact that the planet being taken over had not declared its allegiance to the Federation was of no consequence. All human settlements, whether allied or not, would be defended by the Federation from attack by the Swordsmen or any other military power that sought to expand its territory by conquest.
Backing up his pledge to carry the attack to the enemy, the Chairman deployed all available personnel and vessels to the furthest reaches of human expansion. The deployed forces were given broad authority to deal not only with military attacks on civilians, but to intercept and detain drug runners, slavers and traffickers in stolen goods.
The firestorm of politics roared around the Federation military, but Rachel and her “battle group” focused their energies on the report that Rachel would have to deliver in an astoundingly short time. As winter gave way to spring and the end of the term approached, the report slowly took shape. At 1600 hours the day before it was due, Rachel delivered the report to Commodore Singh’s office.
Commodore Singh’s aide escorted her to the office.
“Cadet Solomon, please have a seat. Judging by the weight of the material you placed on my desk, I suspect you have been busy since we last saw each other.”
“Yes, sir.”
“What did you think of the project?”
“It kept me so busy I stayed out of trouble, sir.”
Commodore Singh laughed. “A peripheral benefit, not one I had intended. I mean how do you feel? Did what you learned doing the project better prepare you for command?”
“Yes, sir it did.”
“Cadet Solomon, the goal of the Academy is to produce the highest quality Federation officers possible. Every once in a while someone comes along with the spark that sets them apart. Your father had that spark. His work at the Academy was brilliant. However, he was as undisciplined as he is intelligent. Even with that, look at wh
at he accomplished in revising the strategies of modern warfare. You are your father’s daughter, but even more than that you are your mother’s. Your mother is as brilliant as your father, but more intense than anyone I had ever met. I do not intend for the Federation to lose you or your sister the way we lost your father and mother. We need officers of your skill far too badly to leave your education to the normal curriculum. Fair warning, Cadet Solomon, if you give me half a chance, I will find another project for you at least as difficult as this one.”
“Sir, I consider myself warned.”
“Cadet, you are dismissed. I will see you after exams are over.”
The day after finals ended, the entire “Battle Group” appeared in the court room with Rachel. They were scheduled to leave for Parris Island and brought their luggage with them. Their duffel bags and suitcases made a substantial pile against the back wall of the courtroom.
The panel entered the room one at a time. Commodore Singh was first.
Commodore McGuire entered the room and greeted each of Rachel’s team individually. He greeted Rachel last. “Thank you so much for defending me.”
He smiled. “Don’t thank me, yet. I’m on the panel.”
Admiral Dankese joined the panel with only the briefest of nods and smiles in Rachel’s direction. Retired Admiral Robert E. Lee, former head librarian for the Terran Naval Academy at Annapolis, ascended to the platform assisted by two Marines who lifted him when his legs failed to carry him up the steps. Robert J. Watkins, retired head of Saturn Industries large ship division was the last to take a seat on the platform.
Commodore Singh introduced the members of the panel. “Cadet Solomon, do you have anything to say before we start the proceedings?”
“Yes, sir, thank you for being here. It is my honor to be in the same room with you let alone defend my writings before you.”
“Very well, shall we begin?”
Admiral Lee opened with the first question. “Cadet Solomon, do I understand you to say that you believe that had the Spanish Armada used smaller, lighter ships, they would have survived the storm and the attacks by the British and lived to press their attack?”
“Yes, sir.”
“And on what do you base this conclusion?”
“An analysis of the ships that made it back to Spain, sir.”
For five hours Rachel defended her conclusions. It quickly became apparent that the panel was not adversarial or antagonistic, but held deeply felt beliefs which she was challenging. The tone of the conversation was intellectual, passionate at times, but always respectful. After two hours, Commodore Singh had coffee and soft drinks brought in. After three hours, he ordered snacks when it became apparent that this discussion was going to take far longer than he had anticipated.
When the questions finally ground to a halt, Mr. Watkins said, “Cadet Solomon, this report is an impressive effort. I would ask you to summarize your report and then to step beyond it. If you were in command of a battleship, how would you defend yourself? If as you suggest, the battleship is obsolete, what should we do with all the perfectly functional hardware sitting in our ship yards?”
Clearly exhausted, Rachel started, “Naval vessels and predators in nature share a common evolution. They grow larger and more powerful with each generation until they reach the point where they are so large that they can no longer support themselves. The large ships grow to the point where they become vulnerable to a new lighter, faster challenger. The American Clipper ship was one such challenger. The Monitor was another. The submarine yet another. The Bismarck was one of the greatest battleships ever built, and yet a fleet of smaller, more nimble ships sank it. The Japanese may have done the Americans a favor in Pearl Harbor by sinking the battleships and missing the aircraft carriers. Forced to change their strategy to take advantage of the resources still available to them, the Americans changed the face of warfare. The American attempt to deploy a previously decommissioned battleship in Vietnam demonstrated that the battleship no longer had an enemy left to fight. The days of the big ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore battery battles were over.”
Rachel paused and caught her breath. “The attack on the Cole demonstrated that anything as slow moving as a capital ship was vulnerable to attack unless defended by small, more maneuverable craft. By the beginning of the twenty-first century, with the exception of the aircraft carriers and guided missile destroyer, the capital ships no longer had an enemy. The enemy they were designed for no longer existed. Who are the enemies of today’s battleships? Are there other capital ships to fight? Other than the two battleships the Federation sold to the Swordsmen that have since been destroyed, the Federation owns all the battleships that are in operational condition. Who will they fight?”
Rachel’s voice grew louder. “The battleship is as vulnerable as any other ship to an attacker capable of the short hyper jump. If I were commanding any capital ship, I would cover my pipes with small ships on patrol. I would place sensor arrays around the ship and I would never attack a decoy.”
“You have still left one part of my question unanswered,” Mr. Watkins said. “What do we do with all that existing hardware?”
“Exploration of new systems is being done haphazardly by small scouts. We lose huge numbers of these ships and we don’t know why. I would propose we use a larger ship to do the exploration. If we are losing scouts because other scouts are killing the later arrivals, a capital ship would be much less likely to be disabled in such an attack. A capital ship could also carry all the resources needed to immediately map and chart a new system which would be a significant improvement over the current system with its long delays between initial discovery and first colonization.”
Rachel paused. “There is one other idea that occurs to me as we speak. Giant hospitals. Mobile giant hospitals that could move to areas of distress and still protect themselves if they wandered into a shooting war. It’s kind of like a military version of the Sisters of Mercy.”
Commodore Singh said, “I believe that answers all the substantive questions. I have one more before we break for our deliberations. Did you write this yourself, or did you have help?”
“I did all the writing myself, although I had help gathering and interpreting the research. In the bibliography I have detailed my sources and if I did not find the resource myself, I listed who found it for me. I would especially like to thank my sister Wendy who spent a week during Spring Break in London with gentlemen from the British Society for the Preservation of Naval Antiquities. They were extremely helpful and offered their assistance to any students you might wish to send their way. Sir, we all worked on it. We all learned from it.”
“Thank you. Shall we retire to my office for our deliberations?”
Admiral Lee interrupted. “There is no reason to keep the young lady in suspense. I move we accept the project and recommend that it be forwarded to the Academy’s curriculum committee for study. I think she and her team have done an excellent job.”
Admiral Dankese seconded the motion. They voted and unanimously accepted the report.
Once released, Rachel and her “battle group” headed for the door intent on catching their airplane to Parris Island.
Admiral Lee turned to Admiral Dankese and said, “She didn’t ask why you were here. Surely she doesn’t think you were here solely on her account?”
“I’m sure she thinks I am here on other business like, for example, my nephew’s graduation, which is also true. Even with that, on a project as big as the one we are about to undertake, they will find out soon enough.”
“Are you ready?”
“No, but we can’t wait until we are. We have to move soon or it will be too late. Are you sure you don’t want to come with us?”
“No, thanks. These old bones have seen enough adventure for one lifetime.”
ACADEMY - CHAPTER NINE
THE CADETS BARELY MADE their flight out of Salt Lake. They took advantage of their two-hour layover in Atlanta to get a decent meal
before catching a plane to Savannah. They had reserved a van and driver to take them to Parris Island. The plane landed in Savannah a few minutes ahead of schedule. They were collecting the last of their luggage when Faye Anne said, “Don’t look know, but I think Colonel Connors is headed in our direction.”
“How could that be?” Rashi asked.
“It is a public airport,” David reminded him.
“And Lt. Col. Strong is with him,” Faye Anne observed.
“I wonder where they’re going?” Wendy asked.
“And they have a squad of Marines following them,” Faye Anne added.
“Someone must be in serious trouble,” David wisecracked.
“And I think it’s us,” Faye Anne said. “At-ten-HUT!”
The six cadets sprang to attention and spun to face the phalanx of Marines bearing down on them. They quickly saluted as soon as they could.
There was purposefulness in the walk that said the Marines had come to collect the cadets.
“As you were, Cadets. Is this everything?” Colonel Connors asked.
“I have one more bag, sir,” Rachel said.
“Corporal Boudreau, stay here. Colonel Strong, take the others. Cadets, go with her.”
The Marines picked up the luggage and headed back down the concourse in the direction from which they had come.
As soon as the group had left, Rachel asked, “Sir, what is going on?”
“Later, cadet.” There was stress in his voice, not anger, but tension.
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