“Objection!” Roma surged to his feet, something feral slipping through the professional veneer. “Counsel is leading the witness.”

“Sustained,” Judge Donahue ruled. “Rephrase, Ms. Valenca.”

Juniper nodded, adjusting her approach with fluid grace. “Mr. Delaney, in your professional opinion, what do these embedded signatures represent regarding your relationship to the system’s architecture?”

Delaney leaned forward slightly, his voice finding that reverent register reserved for things you’ve built with your own hands. “These signatures are more than just markers - they’re fundamental proof of authorship woven into the system’s DNA. Every decision tree, every ethical framework carries my original intent.” He gestured toward the displayed code.

“Those moral weights weren’t just variables - they were my understanding of constitutional rights translated into mathematical certainty. The system’s ability to interpret law wasn’t just some dohickey or decoupled tambourine - these were sophisticated legal interpretation frameworks.”

“And what would you call these frameworks, Mr. Delaney?”

“Well, in technical terms, we called them widgets-”

With a deliberate flair, Roma’s chair scraped back as he rose, his face clouding with disapproval at the terminology employed. “Objection, Your Honor! The language being used is not only offensive and inflammatory in this context but also misguided, as this witness is attempting to equate simple programming variables with constitutionally protected rights.”

“Your Honor,” Juniper countered, her voice steady despite something hot climbing her spine, “Mr. Delaney’s expertise in both software and constitutional frameworks makes him uniquely qualified to draw these parallels.”

Judge Donahue regarded Roma with something close to patience, his expression settled rather than strained. “I’ll allow it.” His eyes stayed on Roma a beat longer than necessary. “But watch your scope, Ms. Valenca.”

Juniper turned back to Delaney, her next question carefully crafted: “Could you explain how these moral rights relate to the affected individuals in our case?”

“Objection!” Roma’s rasp cracked through the air. “Your Honor, we need a sidebar. Immediately.”