Naero's War: The Citation Series 3: Naero's Trial Read Free Page A

honored and cherished laws.”
    That damn finger again, pointing her way.
    “Naero Amashin Maeris murdered another Spacer, and not just any Spacer, but a Mystic High Master. And let me remind you. In Spacer society, the incredibly rare and heinous crime of murder has always–in every case–been punishable by death. Murder is punished by execution, each and every time.”
    No finger this time. Tree just folded his hands in front of himself and even looked sad.
    “Just as it should be now. Murder and crime of the worst sort cannot, has not, is not, and will not–will never be tolerated by our people. It is one of the founding cornerstones of our Spacer society, and what makes us different. It is what makes us Spacers. We do not kill each other!”
    Naero herself did not take a full breath almost until just now. She had had trouble catching her breath, ever since they led her out of her cell and she saw Khai.
    Haisha, Om. Master Tree has nearly convinced me that I should be executed.
    What a rigid dickhead.
    Om! She barely maintained her composure. Bursting out laughing like a nervous lunatic for no apparent reason would certainly not help her case any.
    Yet inside, she was chuckling away like hell, despite the seriousness of all that was taking place.
    Thanks, Om.
    No charge, N.
    They had to listen to a lot more of the same dreck and drama from Master Tree. The big pompous blowhard. Everything with him was the importance of the letter of the law. Nothing else.
    Why should she expect anything different from the High Master of Order? Order was unforgiving, and indifferent.
    That made for a very long day.
    At the end of it, Naero barely touched the fine meal they sent in to her. And that night, she barely slept. Each time that she moved, the binding chains of her shackles clinked or got in her way somehow.
    She could slip out of them, but it would probably raise some kind of alarm if she did so. And she didn’t want to make anyone think that she was attempting to escape.
    She spent most of that night sighing, tossing, and turning on her nanopad. She wondered about her child. She worried about Khai.
    The next day, Master Jo took up Naero’s defense.
    First, he outlined Naero’s character, detailing her incredible military career and record with the Annexation War and the recent defeat of the Ejjai Invasion during The High Crusade to save humanity.
    Master Jo held up her service as a Mystic and how she had actually helped save Master Vane’s life during the attacks on the Mystic Homeworlds and during all of the subsequent attacks by their new, mysterious, and implacably dangerous alien adversaries.
    He called up the unquestionable testimonies of General Walker, Admiral Klyne, and several of the Spacer Elders, who testified to Naero’s honor and high character. To the strength of her word as a Spacer.
    With each cross examination of each witness called, Master Tree asked the same exact questions, and hammered home his point.
    He asked all of Naero’s character witnesses if any Spacer was above the law, and able to commit murder–killing another Spacer–and deserved to not face justice for such a crime.
    Each of them said no in response. And each time, Master Tree cut them off before any of them could say anything else.
    Master Tree had cleverly called no witnesses. Therefore, none of his claims had ever been directly challenged or refuted.
    Then Master Jo went on to outline how valuable Naero was, as the possessor of the elusive, and still untapped, Kexxian Data Matrix. As a Mystic. As a naval commander. As one of the enigmatic chosen Guardians of the ancient obelisk of Change energy for the Three Orders of the Cosmic Prophecies. She could very well play a very important part in the mysteries as they unfolded.
    If nothing else, Naero was also a valuable weapon, to be pitted against their apparently growing list of dangerous and largely unknown enemies. She had played important roles in foiling the plots and plans of their