Cyborg Claude
Episode 49
In the previous episode, the trial of Derrik Burnsheklon begins. The prosecution starts with three witnesses to confirm the facts of how the space station blew up per the investigations. The defense changes their witness list last second to bring up Ramon first. However, he and Mister Matsukura had prepared for this and pursued combining cases because Ramon’s case would help point at Derrik further.
Cyborg Claude Main Page and Table of Contents
The court’s approval of combining the cases occurred in moments. The defense lawyer had until after lunch to assess how much time he needed before proceeding with the trial. Both lawyers had met, and by midafternoon the trial had resumed.
Claude wondered how much overlap appeared in both cases to make the defense lawyer that quick to get on with this case. Pressure because of the magnitude of the charges had played into the decision. The Zen Free States wanted everyone involved found and tried. The universal court had enough information to arrest and bring Evil Uncle Derrik to the Universal Court as the prime suspect. Nagja Trillium had handed him over, though he had tried to run. They froze all his assets and started a full internal investigation into everything he had done at the company.
The defense lawyer grilled Ramon on several points, but received only calm answers. It proved his cousin had been on the fringe of everything, but had continued pursuing Claude here on the Universal Court’s space station. Ramon had no love for cyborgs, and he believed that. He still glanced at Claude’s left arm often. However, he had read a copy of the same book Claude’s mother had all her notes in. A religious text he had only glanced at himself since his early teen years, though he remembered many of the things she and his father had taught him. The book was changing Ramon.
He put his attention back on the defense attorney.
Mister Von Stern paced. “There is nothing to prove you heard this correctly, nor is there anything to disprove you weren’t the ringleader.” He pulled himself up short and turned slowly so faced the jury before pacing back toward the witness stand. “You don’t have any proof other than an AI-controlled app that could have created the entire story. You fabricated more to save yourself and pinned it on the boss, who you admitted sucking up to for your own benefit.”
Mister Matsukura rose. “Objection. He is badgering the witness.”
High Judge Gausamanter said, “Ask a question, please.”
The defense lawyer nodded, but stared at the floor for a moment with his hands on his hips.
Claude swore he could hear a clock ticking in the silence. The defense lawyer had done a good job of skating around the accusation made before the break that he had sent the orders to put the blame on Claude.
The defense lawyer looked up when Evil Uncle Derrik rumbled a low growl. “I have no further questions.” He returned to his seat without looking at his client or the jury.
“Mister Matsukura, your witness,” said Judge Gausamanter.
Mister Matsukura rose and walked toward the witness stand. “Mister Farkas, before we adjourned, you mentioned an app and claimed that Mister Von Stern ordered you to claim Mister Claude Burn was a cyborg who caused the explosions. Is this correct?”
“Yes, sir.”
“How long were you included on this chat app?”
Ramon counted on his fingers. “Nearly ten years.”
“So you probably had quite a few orders through this chat. Would you say the order to defame Mister Claude Burn was similar to other orders or different?” Mister Matsukura kept his gaze on Ramon.
“It was similar, but it was the first to coincide with such a tragic event. Mostly I helped handle scare tactics against competitors with nothing but bluster.” Ramon adjusted in his seat to cross his legs the other way. “I’m not proud of that, but it was how the elite under Mister Burnsheklon were expected to roll.”
“We acquired the files of this app. I would like to display the chat that Mister Farkas received.”
A court clerk pulled up the file and displayed it on a screen everyone could see, though Ramon had to shift further in his seat.
Mister Matsukura walked up to the screen and ran his finger over several lines of text to highlight them. “This is the message that ordered you to defame Mister Claude Burn?”
“Yes.”
“Where were you when you received the first highlighted message?”
“I was enjoying a burger at a restaurant by the gate that would lead me to the ship I already had a room booked on for the next leg of my trip. I finished the burger after the message, walked through the security process, and did not reply until I was on the ship, which is the next highlighted line.”
“After that, what did you do?”
“I stayed in the embarkation area of the space liner, pretending I had an important call.”
“Did you expect a flood of people to come onto the ship?”
Ramon shook his head. “I wasn’t sure what to expect.”
Mister Matsukura paced. “So you saw all these people surge the ship for safety and had time to digest that before this next message came minutes later?”
“Correct.”
“So you knew something was going to happen that you had to peg on Mister Claude Burn, but you did not know what until the next response?”
“Yes.”
Mr. Matsukura changed his route and marched up to the witness stand. “When did it dawn on you that this was premeditated and that someone you knew had to have caused the explosions?”
“I knew it wasn’t coincidence, but I’m not sure if they knew something was up by watching Mister Claude Burn or if they premeditated it? I decided someone within the select group of this chat app had to have planned it all when I finally heard that Mister Claude Burn’s agency immediately jumped in to assist the Zen Free States.”
“When did you hear that?” Mister Matsukura placed a hand on the witness stand rail and leaned in slightly.
“On the news while traveling here.”
“And this did not deter you from what you did on this station against Mister Claude Burn?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“I believed he was a cyborg no matter what he did to help. He could have offered the help to cover himself.”
Mister Matsukura walked away from the stand. “Who did you meet with once on this station?”
“Conrad Von Surlic and Angela Ackernum.”
“Did you know they were part of the Goeken Space Association?”
“No, but I know they were associated with someone who also wanted Mister Claude Burn out of the picture?”
Mister Matsukura spun to face the jury. “This was also organized via this chat app?” He waved at the screen.
“Yes, it was.”
“Please show my next item.” He smoothed his tie while gazing at the screen. “This is the full text around the order to use an android and Mister Von Surlic’s help to take out Mister Burn, is it not?”
Ramon nodded. “Yes.”
Mister Matsukura walked to the screen and highlighted the last two lines. “Tell the court what occurred in these lines.”
“I asked if there was any chance things could go wrong and harm come to someone. The response was that they planned on detaining him quietly in a non-busy area near his lawyer’s office.”
Mister Matsukura moved to lean on the rail of the witness stand. “What made you care about that here, but not appear to show concern when an entire station blew up?”
“I’m not that relentless to climb the corporate ladder.”
“You fully confessed everything. Why?”
“Mister Claude Burn didn’t want to press charges. I also knew at that point one guard had died with the other injured. Also Mister Von Surlic broke a leg in the process of Mister Burn saving his life after fighting the android. Everything pointed at me, and the company gave me an excellent business lawyer, but a terrible defense counsel.” Ramon shook his head. “I accept my part in what I did on both stations. I knew enough, but my ego wouldn’t let me let go of what I would get out of it.”
“And what is that, Mister Farkas?”
“More prestige in the company and a higher rank in the inner circle.” Ramon snorted. “Such stupidity on my part.”
“All the documentation acquired from Nagja Trillium about this chat app is included in the court documentation as part of Mister Ramon Farkas’s file.” Mister Matsukura walked along the jury stand. “Someone deleted it within an hour after the preliminary hearing, but they forgot about how the backup system works for Nagja Trillium’s servers.” He stopped and faced the judge. “I only have one more question for Mister Farkas that pertains to his case alone, but wish to pursue it now that his case is combined with this one.”
“You may proceed, Mister Matsukura.”
“Thank you, Your Honor.” He scanned the room. “Why did you submit to a DNA test as part of your confession, Mister Farkas?”
“Because Mister Claude Burn claimed to be my cousin and proved he was the nephew of Derrik Burnsheklon in the preliminary hearing. Mother never told me about my dad, but I know she had me out of wedlock. She raised me the best she could despite that putting a tremendous strain on her. It crippled her chances of doing more than menial jobs the rest of her life because of the stigma.”
“And did they tell you the results of the DNA test?”
“Yes, sir. I am Derrik Burnsheklon’s son.”
Gasps and murmurs filled the courtroom. It took two taps of the gavel on its block to quiet them.
“I have no further questions for this witness.” Mister Matsukura returned to his seat.
“Do you have further questions for this witness, Mister Von Stern?”
“No, Your Honor.” He waved his hand at Derrik when the man growled something at him.
Claude let out a breath. That had gone too smoothly. However, the defense lawyer had to know the facts put a terrible light on himself and his client. He hadn’t said a word until addressed by the judge.
“You may call your next witness.”
The defense lawyer pinned his gaze on Claude. What did he expect from Claude other than shoving him under more of the data proving he was part of the crew that blew up a space station? The full names of everyone on the chat app along with their handles used were on a slide Mister Matsukura had ready.
Derrik yanked his lawyer down to hiss something in his ear. Ole Evil Uncle Derrik had to be sweating.
“Please call your next witness.”
Mister Von Stern pulled himself out of his client’s grip. “Pardon the delay, Your Honor. I think we can save everyone some time if we jump to Mister Claude Burn.” He stepped further to his right when Derrik snarled. “Or should I say Mister Claude Burnsheklon, since he was approved to inherit his father’s shares in Nagja Trillium.”
“This may save us time, but once again you go against the rules of this court, Mister Von Stern.”
“I understand, but if he and his lawyer, Mister Matsukura, agree, is there an issue with both of them currently here?”
“Mister Matsukura, is this acceptable to you?”
“By all means, this should move this along nicely to a clean ending.”
Claude rose and moved to the gate that blocked him from stepping closer. He bit the inside of his cheek to keep from smirking at his lawyer.
Judge Gausamanter’s pale, gray-eyed gaze drilled into him. “Since you moved, am I to assume you are okay with this?”
“No assumptions necessary. I will be sworn in as the next witness. It’s about time to clear up forty years of nonsense that led to a devastation that may be repaired physically, but may never heal for some emotionally and mentally.” Thinking of all the lives lost on the station, and then his parents made him grimace.
“Swear him in.”
Derrik surged to his feet. “I’m dismissing my lawyer.”
Judge Gausamanter glared at Derrik. “You had that option until you signed off that you would keep your lawyer and would not look for another one.” He held up a long, slender hand when Derrik opened his mouth to protest. “You do have the option to be your own lawyer, though I advise any defendant against doing so.”
“He’s throwing me under the shuttle here.”
“Mister Burnsheklon, do you want to continue with Mister Von Stern as your counsel or do you want to do it yourself?”
Derrik huffed and dropped into his seat. “I’ll keep my lawyer, but he should understand why I’m not happy.”
“I understand more than I want to,” said the defense lawyer. “Let’s proceed, shall we?” He opened the gate and allowed Claude to walk to the witness stand and be sworn in.
“Now we know other hearings gave you sixty percent of Nagja Trillium and proved all the biomechanics in your system does not make you a cyborg because you have no way of thinking directly with any of it. Are you the one that convinced the board of Nagja Trillium to dig up everything against Derrik Burnsheklon and freeze all of his assets upon being charged for the destruction of the Zen Free States station?”
“No. That is the normal business protocol of any Nagjan business when any of its members are charged with a felony of any level.” Claude watched the defense lawyer. Did he see fear in his eyes?
“Charges for crimes committed as far back as forty years were included in this trial that was for the Zen Free States station only. Was that your idea?”
“It sets a precedent. I assume you read them thoroughly since they were filed in time.”
The lawyer sucked in a shaky breath through his nose while gritting his teeth. “Yes, but they reference closed cases that were classified as accidents or deaths by natural causes.”
Claude did not wait for a question. “And all of them have details from more than one place refuting this, and all the truth was buried in the data stores of Nagja Trillium. Per protocol, all files stored on the business servers in association with Derrik Burnsheklon were included in the company investigation that is run separately from this trial. The investigation results found files that confirm what I have presented to the court about my family’s deaths and the attempts on mine. Derrik Burnsheklon used his money and power in the company for his own best interest.”
Claude leaned forward. “But that will all be decided shortly by the company and you, Mister Von Stern, knew all of this as one of the top lawyers. Or should I say, was? As soon as you agreed to be the lawyer handling my uncle’s case, the board fired you. Why? You gave the orders to the crew that blew up the space station just to take me out. We can pull up the slide with all the names of all the users to prove it. And my uncle is listed as the ringleader, and he created the app about one month before my grandfather’s death.”
He looked at Judge Gausamanter, who hadn’t stopped him. He arched a brow.
Judge Gausamanter nodded toward the screen.
Claude turned to see the highlighted names on four chats and the name list. No refuting that Derrik ordered his right-hand man and lawyer to take care of him by any means possible. Von Stern had not disappointed in the variety of orders he gave to take him out, including the setup in the prison.
He snorted and shook his head. “That says it all.” He pinned his uncle with a glare. “You should have known better. My father knew everything going on even during his sixteen years of self-exile on Droeken before you found him. You couldn’t take out the proxy because it was a full company of lawyers. No matter what this jury finds in this case, you already know your shares are forfeit. All I had to do was file my claim to my shares and watch a spy agency dig up the rest.”
Derrik’s face turned red, and he snarled.
“Did I answer everything, Mister Von Stern?”
“Yes, and I plead guilty as charged.” The defense lawyer held out his hands as if ready to be cuffed.
“Take Mister Von Stern into custody.” Judge Gausamanter asked, “How would you like to proceed, Mister Derrik Burnsheklon, seeing that your lawyer confessed guilty to what the evidence is showing?”
Derrik charged the witness stand despite his chains and two guards right behind him. He howled with rage as he was pinned to the floor.
“Remove the defendant from the courtroom.” Judge Gausamanter remained seated with his thin lips compressed into a thinner line than usual. He tapped the gavel twice, and the rumbling from the gallery silenced.
The judge tapped his scrivpad and took a moment to scan what appeared on the screen. “Mister Matsukura, under these irregular, but forthcoming proceedings, you still have the option to cross-examine this witness and give your closing remarks.”
Mister Matsukura rose and walked to the witness stand. “If I’m allowed, I have some questions that are probably self-indulgent more than pertinent to the case.” He smiled at the judge.
“I’ll let you ask one.”
Mister Matsukura nodded. “What are your plans for Nagja Trillium as the majority shareholder?”
Claude took a second to register the unexpected question. He knew what he would do, but suddenly the time was upon him. This jury, after only a few hours of trial, would be given time to deliberate. He took a couple of slow breaths to ease the gut-clenching the revelation caused.
“I plan to work with the board to make it an employee-owned company where no single person can own more than ten percent of the company. The verdict of this case and what the company does with my uncle’s shares will determine how this will be accomplished. I plan to keep ten percent of my assets. The rest will be dispersed to employees as the board sees fit.”
Claude scanned the people filling the gallery. “I’m no businessman, but I will discuss how Nagja Trillium can help right a wrong committed by some of its executives.” He put his attention on the jury. “I will not let one family member ruin the legacy of a great company and my forefathers.”
Mister Matsukura turned to the jury. “I have no further questions for this witness. You have all the information that proves who did what. You even have confessions from two of those involved. You have three people to give verdicts to. Please weigh in on how they helped solve the case and acted in this courtroom.
“We all have been blinded to the truth and run down incorrect paths because of our desires. Sometimes we see it and sometimes we don’t. A few of us may have run the wrong way to avoid things we assumed would hurt more. Some know better, but don’t care.
“May you find the verdicts that are right for the defendants, acceptable to the victims, and allow you to sleep at night after this trial is closed.”
Mister Matsukura turned to the judge. “That was my closing statement, Your Honor.”
“So noted. The jury may be escorted out to commence their deliberations.” He rose. “Court will resume when the jury is ready to give its verdicts for Mister Derrik Burnsheklon, Mister Martin Von Stern, and Mister Ramon Farkas. All parties will be notified of when the jury is ready to submit its verdict.” He tapped the gavel on its block. “Court is dismissed.”
Claude slowly rose. He smoothed his jacket, hoping to hide his shaking hands. It was almost over and soon he would step into the next season of his life. His gaze locked with Min’s. I hope they are lenient with Ramon. However it goes, I know I have a full team I should be willing to lean on for anything.
< Episode 48 | Main Page | Episode 50 >
Burying truth is not a good idea. Someone will crack and leak it. Or it will be found even if you think you deleted it. Two out of three plead guilty when faced with everything the prosecution found, but now the waiting begins as the jury determines their verdict.
As always, I hope you enjoyed the read and I look forward to hearing what you think.