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

Vane to kill her. She had every right to defend herself against anyone trying to kill her. No matter who the attacker was. Even if that person was a Mystic High Master.”
    Naero glanced around her slightly, suddenly hopeful and certain that Master Jo had them all on her side now.
    Yet once Master Jo was finished with Naero, Master Tree rose up to cross examine her and her testimony.
    “Naero Maeris. You make a spurious claim that High Master Vane attacked you with the purpose and intent to take your life. What is your proof of that?”
    Naero paused for a moment, uncertain how to answer. She was caught completely off guard. “What? I don’t understand.”
    “High Master Jo has no proof of any of this. Neither do you. It is, however, a feeble attempt on your part to explain away you guilt, and your crime. And now, with you on trial for your life, we are supposed to accept nothing but your very convenient word?
    “How can you prove to every one and to the jury, that Master Vane was trying to kill you, and that you acted in self-defense? Don’t bother answering, because we already know that you can’t. For all we know, he was merely trying to restrain or capture you. Again, what factual evidence can you present to prove that you were defending yourself? Other than your own convenient account of things, in your own convenient words?”
    Naero was stymied once more.
    “Answer the question, Naero Maeris.”
    “If my word and my honor are not good enough, then no, I have no other proof. No one in my situation would. What occurred happened solely between Master Vane and myself. And after I defended myself again his attempts to kill me…he was gone.”
    Now Master Tree pressed his obvious advantage on the point of law. “So, by your own admission in your own words, you have absolutely no proof that your life was at risk, or that you were actually defending yourself when you killed Master Vane?”
    Naero remained silent.
    “Now, why don’t you tell us exactly how you killed Master Vane?”
    “Well, when he attacked me–”
    “Stop. Let’s get this clear. You can’t prove that he attacked you, or that you were acting in self-defense, so let’s just skip that farce. Go directly to how you killed him. Please, explain it for all to hear.”
    “Yes, but–”
    “There, you admitted it. Your Honor, let the witness be dismissed. She agreed for all to hear that she killed Master Vane. She clearly just confessed to murder.”
    “That’s not what I said or was going to say.”
    “Step down. You are dismissed.”
    “No, let me have my say. This is only a trick. You did not let me finish my statement in answer to your line of questioning.”
    “Your confession is all that matters. Step down.”
    Master Jo rose up and tried to recover. “Your honor, this is clearly a dirty trick on the part of the prosecution. Please allow Fleet Captain Maeris to finish her statement and explain herself, for the benefit of the jury. She is on trial for her life. She should not be maneuvered into condemning herself in this sleight-of-hand fashion. She was clearly baited into this trap, and I demand that she be allowed to explain herself, and her statement.”
    “The court agrees,” Admiral Klyne announced. “Captain Maeris, take your time, and explain yourself fully. Tell us what happened in your own words.”
    Naero nodded, took in a deep breath, and prepared herself. “For the record, this is what happened. This is how Master Vane died. He came at me several times, attacking me and telling me that it was time for him to kill me and take me out, just as he had been threatening me since the day I met him. He insisted that I was going to turn into some kind of monster.
    “I fought him off; I tried to get away from, repeatedly. In the end, he had me cornered and even told me that he was going to use the forbidden Eye of Annihilation Cosmic attack on me, a terrifying Chaos energy attack. I had seen former Adept Hashiko destroy herself