A Frank Conversation

Posted on Sun Oct 24th, 2010 @ 9:24am by Vice Admiral Iluvar & Commander Earlond

Mission: Episode 1.3 - "The Time of Trial"
Location: Counsel of the Defense Office, Deep Space Four
Timeline: Mission Day 04, 1054 hours

ON: [[Counsel of the Defense Office, Deep Space Four, Mission Day 04, 1054]]

"I told you this wasn't a good idea," Joseph said, looking over at where Earlond stood to one side of the room, "You desire to testify on behalf of the admiral is admirable, but with all due respect, your testimony so far has given the prosecution an opportunity to take advantage of the situation."

"Nothing I said can directly be used against Iluvar," Earlond said. "Besides, how else was I supposed to answer? I can't lie to the court."

Joseph shook his head. Were this any other case, he might have been inclined to agree with the commander, but this was Arnold Mercer they were dealing with...things could not be taken so lightly. Arnold did not need any more openings to take advantage of. "I'm sorry commander," he said after a moment, "I understand your desire to testify, but I don't think you understand who you're dealing with in there."

"Alright," Earlond said, crossing his arms. "Enlighten me." Truth be told, he'd only ever heard mention of the name Mercer in passing and never taken the time to look into it further.

"Captain, could you give us a moment," Iluvar asked before Wells could reply. He looked toward the members of the defense counsel for a moment. It was clear from the look in his eyes that he was serious.

Joseph nodded slowly and motioned to the other two members of his team. He wasn't exactly thrilled with the idea, but he would respect the wishes of his client. It wasn't his place to get involved in whatever relationship the admiral shared with his former first officer, except for when it directly affected the case. Slightly wary, he and the other two members of the defense counsel stepped out into the corridor and allowed the door to close behind them.

Earlond turned to Iluvar. "Sir, I apologize if my actions were out of bounds," he said. "I felt that I might be able to add something to your defense."

It was a difficult position for Iluvar to be in. He was still disappointed in the fact that Earlond had broken his trust, but he could not overlook the man's attempt to demonstrate loyalty to his superior officer even when his own future was in doubt. The question was, how far was he willing to go? How far was Iluvar willing to let him?

"This could mean the end of your career," Iluvar said slowly.

"That's a choice I'm ready and willing to make," Earlond said firmly. If he could manage to help Iluvar - even if that meant the end of his own career - he would gladly accept the consequences.

Iluvar did not need to see the look in Earlond's eyes to know that the man was telling the honest truth. Unfortunately, Iluvar knew of only one way that this situation could be resolved and that was to tell the truth. "Alright," Iluvar said, coming to the conclusion in his own mind, "If that's what you want to do, I'm not going to stand in your way. Just know that if you are going to do this, you need to commit to it one hundred percent."

Earlond nodded. "I understand, sir," he said. "And despite our differences in opinion, it's always been an honor serving under you. This really isn't a choice for me - I couldn't imagine serving under any other CO, and if this goes badly for either of us, the result will be the same."

Loyal to a fault. Iluvar might never know how Earlond had gotten mixed up in the affairs of the mysterious Organization or what effect that might have had on creating the man he was today, but he could tell that there was still potential there somewhere. Maybe, in time, he would be able to trust Earlond as he once did...this moment was certainly a step in that direction.

"See you in forty minutes," Iluvar replied, turning and disappearing out into the corridor. The door hissed closed behind him, leaving Earlond alone with his thoughts.

Earlond watched Iluvar go, feeling a rare pang of regret. He didn't often second-guess his own decisions; often, there wasn't anything he could do to change those decisions. Now, however, he couldn't help but wonder how different this situation might be had he not betrayed Iluvar's trust.

OFF

A JP By:

Rear Admiral Iluvar
Commanding Officer
USS Pandora

Captain Joseph Wells (NPC)
Legal Officer
Judge Advocate-General
Played by: RAdm Iluvar

and

Commander Earlond
Former Executive Officer
USS Pandora