END of LINE: Humanities Last Stand - part 3 (59 page)

“Hi Snoop. Holding up OK?”

“Yes Sir.”

“For the record, my name is Admiral Jon Connell. I will also be presenting evidence against the accused."

“I object!” the Defence council stood and declared. “This male has no training in matters of the court. He is nothing other than an injured warrior.”

“I will take that into consideration, General.” The King said. “Let him present the evidence.”

“This is ridiculous!” The Regent shouted and stood to leave. “These people have no power over me! I will not be party to this foolishness!” Several of the armed security personal around the room pointed their pistols directly at the Regent.

“Sit down brother!” The King demanded. “I’ve learned much in my time among these people and you will give an accounting!” The King stared directly at his
Regent as if daring the male to give him an excuse to cause his brother bodily harm. “Please Admiral-General Connell, continue.”

When the room had quieted and calm regained control of everyone, Jon addressed his Data Master as if nothing had happened, “Snoop, you have a huge amount
of data to share with us. It may take more than just one day for this court to digest all of it. Can you afford to give us several days if needed?”

“Yes sir. It’s not hard as long as all I have to do is tell people the truth. I've always been good at being truthful.”

"Maybe you should have a seat." Jon waved and a chair was brought in and placed near the podium so Snoop could sit to give his testimony if he became tired of standing. “Care to tell the court how you got the call sign of Snoop?”

“Jackal gave it to me after I accidentally triggered the video of him and Wrenches together in the forward showers.” the Data Master said with a grin on
his face. Around the room many of the audience chuckled.

“Snoop, this next question is very important. Everything you're going to present here was gotten using legal methods of data collection. You have signed
and approved warrants for all of it. Right?”

“Yes sir. Everything except the recordings of the prisoners in their holding area. No warrants are needed to have security cameras in a holding area.”

“Speaking of the holding area, can you playback the part where the prisoners talk about a monorail crash on Haven that was responsible for the death of our
beloved Queen?”

 

 

So it went for three full days of presentations. There was data that had been uncovered on everything from the plot to prevent Satrina and Jon's messages
from being delivered to the plot to kill the Queen, the Prince, the King and lastly Satrina. There was even data discovered that linked the Regent as the
one who had ordered the capture of both Galaxiey and Satrina to be used as the Regents personal sex slaves. His plans had involved more than his own
private perversions, but also using them to force ranking members of the Royal Household into compromising positions.

Information on the attempt on Prince Zeprik's life was given showing that it was the Regent who had paid to have the Prince killed. When Jon gave his data
to the court recorder to be put up on the large screen at the head of the room, the entire crowd gasped in disbelief when they read the details of payments
to not only the King family, but also to the Palace Healers who had been giving the Prince the drugs that were slowly killing him.

When Healer Hukor came forward and presented his scans showing poison in both the King and the Prince Zeprik's systems, the crowd shouted out for the Regent's death! It became so rowdy that the security officers stationed around the room had to place several members of the audience in restraints and remove them from the assembly. Each of the security team were members of Leviathan's grub troops and as such were more than prepared to handle the situation without resorting to using their pistols.

The King over ruled every attempt by the Defense to object or to have evidence thrown out. It became clear to all that the evidence being presented was not
only the truth, but thoroughly researched and provable by anyone who bothered to look for it. Nightly News Commentators did exactly that every night after
the trial recessed for the day. Every bit of the evidence was examined and found to be an exact description of the events that had taken place. The
repercussions went as far as the news rooms on Haven were more than one corrupt department head was tried and sent to the prison planet to live out the
rest of their lives.

The destruction of Sanctuary had proven to be a mistake and had never been a part of the Regent's plans. Helios King was solely to blame for that and he
would face those charges alone. Tiaz had found evidence of the Regent's plans to arrange the marriage of Satrina to the very same comptroller who Jon had
discovered stealing from his company back in Haven space! The thief was a distant relative of the Regent's second cousin, and the Regent had promised the
man would have Satrina as mate provided he would always push her to do the Regent's bidding. When the plot to have both Gala and Satrina delivered to the
Regent's private pleasure house already addicted to the Lustor Drug was presented, Jon had to bite back his anger that they could ever plan to use two
females that he loved in such a way.

When it came time for the defense to present its rebuttal evidence, the General assigned to defend the three accused males whispered to the other General
assigned to the case then he simply stood with his head hung low and muttered. “We're finished U'Lanto. We are all dead men.” The smug look on the face of
the Regent turned to one of abject horror when the General who was the lead Defender said to the assembly, “In light of the data presented, there is no
defense possible Sire.” before sitting back down.

The King issued arrest orders for the three Generals who were not at the trial and any of the Palace personnel who had a willing hand in the plots of his
brother. He demanded the death penalty for all three defendants and the Generals who had acted in support of the Regent's plans, to be carried out
immediately. A troop of armored Palace Guards marched into the room and took the males into custody. They were marched from the room in restraints and
taken to an empty bay and left there. Within a few minutes, lights flashed and alarms started wailing. Then the outer door slid down exposing the bay to
the hard vacuum of space and sucking the males out to float among the stars forever, or until they fell into the gravity well of Lexon II and burned up in
the atmosphere during reentry. The news vid cameras recorded every second of the trial and the execution for everyone to see. Over the next few days the
vid of the guilty men being sucked into space played over and over to every home on Lexon II and across the central planets including Haven along with the message that plotting the murder of the King or his family still carried the death penalty.

Jon had stationed members of his Special Troops near to the other Generals who were absent from the hearing and the Palace Healers who had aided in
the affair. The Generals were easy to move troopers close to. Each of them was assigned a new personal aide who was responsible for fulfilling the job of a
Butler, which gave the Troopers almost total privacy during the hours from last meal until bedtime. The Palace Healers were much more difficult to get
close to. In the end, the Troopers assigned found it easiest to simply follow the Healers and wait until they could make the Healer’s death appear to be
just another mugging in the poorer sections of the city. The King had found each one of the males guilty and sentenced them all to death.

Within just a few hours of sentencing, each of those males were quietly killed by the Troopers assigned to carry out the King's judgment. Pinned to the tunic of each dead
General and Healer was a message stating the reason why they had been killed. Once the messages were read, the investigators looking into the deaths closed
the matter. When the reporters started asking the usual questions that followed the death of a high ranking member of society the only answer any of them
got was that the death was legally handled by agents of the King while carrying out the King's orders. The investigators even showed the news stations the
messages that were found with each body. The reporters turned in their stories simply telling their newsrooms that the deaths were only the King's justice
being carried out on the guilty parties.

As for the computer controlled cargo ship that had been sent to destroy the Palace, it had a new mission now. It had been given a new course and a new
direction. Its engines were pushing it along at its top sub light speed, directly into the sun of Lexon II. It would be nothing but burnt ash long before
it reached its final destination. Some said a small flash could be seen as it burned up, others said there was nothing to see because the sun was too
bright, still others didn't believe that the King would order a perfectly good ship to be destroyed. This last group convinced themselves that the ship had
been claimed by BITTFTL. Co. and was secretly hauling supplies to some far away hiding spot for the King to use in the event of a successful overthrow of
his rule.

Two days after the execution of the Regent and his accomplices, the King ordered another gathering of all the visitors and news reporters back in the
makeshift courtroom. By now nearly the entire Royal Court had come up to tour Leviathan and the room seemed over crowded. Jon and Satrina where present as
was Gala and Zeprik. Satrina looked absolutely stunning in her own version of the House Connell colors that created a spiral around her body making her
appear to be the center of a whirlwind. Gala wore her favorite gown that displayed the House Connell colors in narrow bands that wound around her small
body.

Prince Zeprik wore the armor that had been given to him on the mission to capture the cargo ship that had targeted the Palace. It was the same silver and
black as Jon's house colors. The only indication of his Royal standing was a scarlet sash with gold braids he wore over the armor. Jelio stood beside the
Prince in her own armor trying desperately to hide her smiles and the Prince's hand tightly holding her own.

Jon had been instructed to wear his Umin battle armor and to bring is Dragon's Breath sword. He was to wait at the back of the room with his own team
surrounding him. Each team member was dressed in their battle armor and carried their swords also. A team of Royal Guards had politely asked them to wait
outside until they were called.

It wasn't long before the double doors were flung open and a guard called out, “Jon Connell, the King requests you and your team members to come forward!”
before he turned back into the room and lead them all down to a ramp that had been constructed so they could simply walk up onto the stage. On the walk to
the stage where the King sat, Jon looked around the room and saw mostly news vid reporters, Royal House members and then in a special section closest to
the front sat members of his own crew. Phillie stood as he made his way to the stage and Jon noticed the tears in her eyes and the huge smile on her face.
Jarrieal walked at Jon's right side while Mopie was on his left. Tiaz stood beside the Data Master as he stood with his arm loosely wrapped around her
waist. Those two had become more than teammates in the short time they had worked together. They were mates now and the happiness was apparent on them
both.

When Jon reached the platform where the King sat, he stopped and gave a fist salute with a deep bow before he said, “Your majesty, I am Jon Connell. You
requested that I attend this meeting.”

“Yes Warrior Connell I did. I have been made aware that my daughter, Crown Princess Satrina, has claimed you as her mate. Princess Satrina, is this the
male you have claimed?” King Le'puix asked loud enough for everyone to hear.

“It is my King. I have claimed him, given him of my essence and I shall never claim another.”

“What say you Jon Connell? Do you accept the claim of my daughter?”

“Yes your Majesty and I also claim her as my mate for all time.” Jon said.

“Daughter, He has accepted your claim, and made his own claim on you. Do you accept his claim?”

“Yes Father. I gladly accept his claim upon me and will offer him all that I am. I shall present him with many strong offspring and love him forever.”

“Then let it be so. May the Goddess bless you both.” the King declared. The ancient practice of announcing the planting of the male’s seed had been stopped
many cycles ago. The act of the planting was now one of those things that everyone assumed would happen at the newly mated couple's earliest opportunity.
Most people in this day never waited for the formal ceremony anyway.

King Le'puix wasn't yet finished though, “Draw your sword Jon Connell and give it to me.” Jon slowly drew the Dragon's Breath intending to carefully hand
the sword to the King. Instead he was so nervous that he accidentally activated the plasma flame before the King gripped the hilt and raised the flaming
sword high in the air for all to see its flame.

Not one to be startled by unexpected events at official ceremonies, the King acted as if flaming swords were a common thing as he called out, “Everyone
hear now the claim of your King. I claim the Warrior, Jon Connell, who kneels before me this day, as the mate of my beloved daughter. I bestow upon him all
the rights and privileges of a Prince, for as my daughter's husband he is nothing less. I also bestow the rank of Admiral-General and the position of the
Royal Representative to the rim worlds. I command him to continue the work he has already begun. His first duty as my Representative to the rim worlds will
be to destroy the Lustor Drug farms on Canari Prime, using whatever means he sees fit. Be it known to all, that on the rim, he carries the same authority
as the King. His word is my word. He answers only to me, and of course to his mate.” King Le'puix smiled and waited as the muffled laughter died down
before continuing, “Can you be my right arm to the Lexonian people of the rim? Can you offer them fair judgments and faithfully see to their needs just as
any King should care for his people? Will you accept my claim Jon Connell?”