Many Larkinsons following the court proceedings in person or from remote began to develop an incredulous thought.
Venerable Taon Melin might actually be able to get away with deliberately killing a third order living mech and fighting against Lanie with the intent to kill.
Sure, the prosecution also charged Taon with a bunch of other crimes, such as conduct unbecoming of a champion and disobeying the direct orders of a superior, but it was the three biggest ones that truly mattered to the clansmen following the two-day trial.
People who learned about the mission and how it ended up in disaster all wanted Taon to account for his actions. It would be bad for morale if everyone gained the perception that Taon essentially managed to get away with murder!
It didn't matter what the Red Two said about designating living mechs as property rather than life forms that deserved to be treated in the same way as humans.
