corroborative detail, intended to give artistic verisimilitude to an otherwise bald and unconvincing narrative. "
- The Mikado
"The Defence has attempted to contend," said SJS-Judge Slithe, "that there is no evidence, other than pure hearsay, linking Efil Drago San to the sickening and utterly deplorable slaughter that was broadcast city-wide from the Killing Zone. As you can see in this reclaimed footage, however, Drago San is culpable in every respect..."
"Objection!" cried Barnstable Wheems.
"Oh, Grud, what is it now?" said Chief Judge Hershey.
"Veracity of this so-called evidence," said Wheems, rising to his feet and glaring about himself in an attempt to be imposing.
"As I understand it," he continued, "the complex which housed this so-called 'Killing Zone' was completely destroyed, along with all its records, when several million tonnes of raw sewerage was blown through it, as a result of a completely unrelated accident in the Sector Nine Resyk facility, which necessitated what I believe is called an emergency core-dump."
Wheems smirked a little, in anticipation of some coming and supposedly humorous comment. "Am I to understand that a number of Judges are slightly more... fragrant than before in reclaiming this so-called footage?"
The humorous comment, of course, went down like a lead dirigible.
"The footage was reclaimed," said SJS-Judge Slithe, "from material imprinted on the synaptic network of one Psi-Judge Janus, who was forced to psionically interface with the transputer-based control system of the Killing Zone before it was destroyed. This material and more was imprinted on her living brain by the psychic backlash."
"Then Defence contends," said Barnstable Wheems, "that all of this is still merely hearsay. Some delusional hallucination resulting from that action - if it ever happened in the first place - or actively and maliciously made up."
"Give it a rest, Wheems," said Hershey. "You're the only guy in the world, it seems, who even wants to question the fact that he actually did it. For one thing, we have surviving and unimpeachable witnesses - Dredd, Janus and an Undercover Operations Judge whose actual name has no bearing on this hearing.
"For another thing, we have Drago San's sworn statement, which roughly boils down to, 'Did it? Course I bleeding did it. What are you going to do about it?" You're on a hiding to nothing here, Wheems, if the main thrust of your argument is that he didn't do it."
"Of course," said Wheems. "I am merely serving the best interests of my, uh, client, and bringing up that first possibility as a matter of form. The purpose of this hearing, however, is to decide other issues than the point of simple culpability."
"Hey, I'm Danny Consart, this is Mega-City News - a fistful of fun every fifteen minutes! Coming up, environmentalists - should they just get the drokk over themselves or what? We went through hell, after all, to pretty much make sure there's no environment left so's they'd stop banging on about it. That's a special report, with Hartley Whipple, coming up.
"Also coming up, N'Synthetic sole-survivor and solo pop sensation Manda T talks about her new daughter, Pixie Astroflash. She's a right little star, says Manda, as you'll see when she uses the holo-vid footage of the birth in her stonking new data-wafer. Way to squeeze one out for the guys, Manda!
"And we'll be talking to hot-rockin' Xeno-porn director Jason Kane about his upcoming and utterly original holo-sim, Xenomorphic Bondage Slaves XXXVII . I can hardly wait! Jason appears courtesy of Dead Dog in the Water PreProductions, and wishes it to be known by any Justice Department forces who might be watching that any similarity between him and the notorious Cursed Earth brigand 'Captain' Jack Harkness is a purely unfortunate coincidence. He's had a bit of trouble in that area, apparently.
"All that, coming up soon. But first, our Public Service remit under the Laws and Statutes of Mega-City One
- The Mikado
"The Defence has attempted to contend," said SJS-Judge Slithe, "that there is no evidence, other than pure hearsay, linking Efil Drago San to the sickening and utterly deplorable slaughter that was broadcast city-wide from the Killing Zone. As you can see in this reclaimed footage, however, Drago San is culpable in every respect..."
"Objection!" cried Barnstable Wheems.
"Oh, Grud, what is it now?" said Chief Judge Hershey.
"Veracity of this so-called evidence," said Wheems, rising to his feet and glaring about himself in an attempt to be imposing.
"As I understand it," he continued, "the complex which housed this so-called 'Killing Zone' was completely destroyed, along with all its records, when several million tonnes of raw sewerage was blown through it, as a result of a completely unrelated accident in the Sector Nine Resyk facility, which necessitated what I believe is called an emergency core-dump."
Wheems smirked a little, in anticipation of some coming and supposedly humorous comment. "Am I to understand that a number of Judges are slightly more... fragrant than before in reclaiming this so-called footage?"
The humorous comment, of course, went down like a lead dirigible.
"The footage was reclaimed," said SJS-Judge Slithe, "from material imprinted on the synaptic network of one Psi-Judge Janus, who was forced to psionically interface with the transputer-based control system of the Killing Zone before it was destroyed. This material and more was imprinted on her living brain by the psychic backlash."
"Then Defence contends," said Barnstable Wheems, "that all of this is still merely hearsay. Some delusional hallucination resulting from that action - if it ever happened in the first place - or actively and maliciously made up."
"Give it a rest, Wheems," said Hershey. "You're the only guy in the world, it seems, who even wants to question the fact that he actually did it. For one thing, we have surviving and unimpeachable witnesses - Dredd, Janus and an Undercover Operations Judge whose actual name has no bearing on this hearing.
"For another thing, we have Drago San's sworn statement, which roughly boils down to, 'Did it? Course I bleeding did it. What are you going to do about it?" You're on a hiding to nothing here, Wheems, if the main thrust of your argument is that he didn't do it."
"Of course," said Wheems. "I am merely serving the best interests of my, uh, client, and bringing up that first possibility as a matter of form. The purpose of this hearing, however, is to decide other issues than the point of simple culpability."
"Hey, I'm Danny Consart, this is Mega-City News - a fistful of fun every fifteen minutes! Coming up, environmentalists - should they just get the drokk over themselves or what? We went through hell, after all, to pretty much make sure there's no environment left so's they'd stop banging on about it. That's a special report, with Hartley Whipple, coming up.
"Also coming up, N'Synthetic sole-survivor and solo pop sensation Manda T talks about her new daughter, Pixie Astroflash. She's a right little star, says Manda, as you'll see when she uses the holo-vid footage of the birth in her stonking new data-wafer. Way to squeeze one out for the guys, Manda!
"And we'll be talking to hot-rockin' Xeno-porn director Jason Kane about his upcoming and utterly original holo-sim, Xenomorphic Bondage Slaves XXXVII . I can hardly wait! Jason appears courtesy of Dead Dog in the Water PreProductions, and wishes it to be known by any Justice Department forces who might be watching that any similarity between him and the notorious Cursed Earth brigand 'Captain' Jack Harkness is a purely unfortunate coincidence. He's had a bit of trouble in that area, apparently.
"All that, coming up soon. But first, our Public Service remit under the Laws and Statutes of Mega-City One
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