"Right."
"Did you file any reports on this miswiring and safety violations and other problems you say you observed?"
"Uh, well, now, I talked to some folks about it."
"Did you file any formal reports?"
"Uh, no."
"How do you explain the fact that the records on the Maury 's overhaul at the shipyard show the work on her passed quality assurance inspections at every stage?"
"I guess they missed some stuff."
"How do you explain the fact that the Maury 's crew did not complain of the conditions you say were easily visible?"
"I dunno."
Commander Carr looked down at her table and shook her head again. "No more questions."
McMasters gave Lieutenant Bashir a questioning look. Bashir shook his head. The judge turned toward the members. Captain Carney, smiling the same way he had with Lieutenant Falco, shook his head. "The witness is excused."
Bashir had his head bent as Jen whispered to him with a fierceness that could be easily seen. He shook his head. She whispered again, her face stern. Bashir nodded and stood. "Your Honor, the defendant wishes to testify on her own behalf."
McMasters seemed nonplussed for a moment. "You're kind of rushing things, aren't you, Lieutenant? If Lieutenant Shen wishes to make a sworn statement during that portion of the trial, she's free to do so."
"Your honor, Lieutenant Shen wishes to testify as a sworn witness in her own defense."
The judge bent a stern look on Jen. "Lieutenant Shen, I'd normally be giving these instructions a bit later in the trial, but I'll give them now to ensure you understand your rights. You have the right to make a statement. Included in your right to present evidence are the rights you have to testify under oath, to make an unsworn statement, or to remain silent. If you testify, you may be cross-examined by the trial counsel or questioned by me and the members. If you decide to make an unsworn statement you may not be cross-examined by trial counsel or questioned by me or the members. You may make an unsworn statement orally or in writing, personally, or through your counsel, or you may use a combination of these ways. If you decide to exercise your right to remain silent, that cannot be held against you in any way. Do you understand your rights?"
Jen stood to attention and nodded. "I understand, Your Honor."
"And you still wish to testify at this time under oath?"
"I do, Your Honor."
Judge McMasters made a bemused gesture. "Very well, Lieutenant Shen. You may proceed."
As Jen walked to the witness stand, her movements carefully controlled, Paul finally realized the implications of what was happening. Those were the only two witnesses Bashir could turn up, and they were both really weak. He couldn't find any real experts to testify for Jen. He couldn't find technical evidence to exonerate her. So now it's all up to Jen to defend herself, to try to convince the members of the court what I already know is true, that all the experts are wrong.
Jen reached the witness stand and turned to face the courtroom. She slowly raised her right hand for the bailiff to swear her in. "Do you, Lieutenant Junior Grade Jenevieve Diana Shen, swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?"
"I do." Jen sat, her back perfectly straight, her eyes scanning the courtroom before settling on the members of the court. Paul grimaced at her voice, so controlled and unemotional that it sounded almost robotic. But what else can she do? How else can she speak that wouldn't also look bad? Emotional is bad. Unemotional is bad She just has to be neither emotional or unemotional. One more trap for her in this court-martial.
Lieutenant Bashir stood before her. "Lieutenant Shen, please describe in your words what happened onboard USS Maury on 21 February."
She took a deep breath. "The engineering system on USS Maury had been displaying minor but erratic problems since we had come out of overhaul. Commander Juko told Lieutenant Schmidt and me that he was getting increasingly frustrated trying to deal with the problems. While each problem was individually minor, Commander Juko told us that he was concerned they might indicate some underlying problem that could prove more serious."
Paul glanced over at Commander Carr, who was listening intently and taking notes, but not revealing any reaction.
Jen swallowed and took another breath. "On the afternoon in question, we had just deactivated our anti-detection systems. That caused some fluctuations in power loads. Most of them seemed to be dealt with, but the after power coupling kept saying it was overloading and then immediately saying it wasn't. Up, down. Up, down. We couldn't figure out what the problem was by remote readings. I suggested sending one of our petty officers to check out the coupling in person. Commander Juko instead ordered me to go check it. He told me he wanted to be sure we could figure out what the problem was."
Another pause, another breath. "I headed aft. I'd just cleared the after survival bulkhead when a tremendous shock shook the ship. I was hurled against the nearest bulkhead. When my head cleared, I could see the survival bulkhead had been badly damaged and the area I was in was decompressing. I accessed the nearest survival locker. Many of the suits had been damaged by fragments from the explosion, but I found an intact one. After donning it, I tried to open the hatch leading forward. It was jammed solid. Within moments of discovering this, enlisted personnel began entering the same area I was in, trying to find out what had happened and seeking safety. Since we couldn't patch the survival bulkhead with the means available to us, we salvaged as many intact survival suits as we could and headed farther aft in search of undamaged compartments."
Jen paused. "We initially followed instructions to wait for rescue, but without enough survival suits we determined that would result in the death of many of the personnel. So I took an enlisted crew member and proceeded forward again, attempting to make our way past the survival bulkhead in hopes of contacting the rest of the ship. When we finally found a route into the area where… where… the after engineering compartment had been, we encountered a few members of the crew conducting emergency repairs."
"At no time did I take any action which could have caused the destruction of the engineering compartments on my ship. I did nothing which could have led to the deaths of so many of my shipmates, many of whom… whom… were my friends. I don't know why anyone, let alone me, would have wanted to harm them. I do not know what caused the events of 21 February. I do know I had nothing to do with them."
Jen stopped speaking and abruptly looked straight at Lieutenant Bashir, unable to conceal her nervousness. Bashir smiled reassuringly. "Lieutenant Shen, when you said 'we' undertook various actions to ensure the safety and survival of the personnel in the after portion of the Maury, didn't you actually mean you did those things?"
"I was the senior line officer present, Lieutenant. I had the responsibility to take command and order such actions as necessary given the situation in which we found ourselves."
"Then you saved them. By your quick and effective actions. You saved twenty-one sailors."
Jen swallowed again, then nodded. "I… did what I was supposed to do."
"What was your reaction when you learned the extent of what had happened to the USS Maury?"
She visibly paled at the question. "I…"
"I'm sorry, Lieutenant Shen. Is it fair to say you were grief-stricken?"
"Yes."
"Horrified?"
"Yes."
"What was your reaction when you learned you would be charged with causing those events?"
Jen's mouth worked for a moment before she answered. "Disbelief."
"Do you know of any reason why you in particular should be held responsible for what happened?"
"As God is my witness, no."