2275

Marris III

"Captain Khan, you must come quickly!" an urgent voice shouted, pulling Khan from his rest.

Silently vowing to kill whoever dared to wake him from his sleep when all the colony knew that sleep did not come quickly or easily to their Captain, Khan rose from the bunker within the Klingon vessel that he used as both a home and personal base and saw that Rodriguez was looking rather frantic.

"What is it?" Khan asked in an angry voice as he rose. "Do we have unwelcome guests?"

Rodriguez shook his head, "Susan Ling is very ill and bleeding," he reported anxiously. "She was in the laboratory with Doctor Marcus and she suddenly collapsed, vomiting blood as she lay on the ground."

Khan's eyes widened and he followed Rodriguez out of the vessel and through the colony of homes created by whatever could be found towards the makeshift lab that had been created with the disassembled shuttle that Admiral Chandra had landed on the planet with several years ago.

The lab had only a few tables and a few things created from supplies taken from the Starfleet shuttle and the Klingon vessel, but Khan took no notice of anything but the sight of Susan lying on the floor beside a pool of blood with blood dripping down her mouth while Carol knelt beside her, "WHAT HAPPENED?!" Khan roared angrily, wondering if Carol had in fact attacked Susan out of rage.

"I suddenly felt sick," Susan spoke weakly, gazing at Khan weakly. "I threw up blood."

Khan frowned at Carol, "What can be done, Doctor Marcus?" he asked in a commanding voice.

"I don't know except give her some medication to stop the bleeding, but we are limited on resources," Carol replied in a concerned voice, glaring at Khan. "All we can do is cool her down to slow the flow."

Khan thought for a moment and nodded, "The Romulans were fools to leave us our old cargo ship and the tubes as a gesture of mercy," he said sharply, referring to the vessel that was deep in the jungle enough that the exact location was only known by him. "Miss Ling, I must freeze you in a cryotube to slow your blood flow and preserve your brain function. I do not know why you are suddenly ill..."

"Doctor Sevrin gave us each some Augument blood in the time since we've been here so we could be more productive members of society," Susan said anxiously. "He gave it to me when I was pregnant..."

Khan's anger grew, "Demora does not have superhuman abilities," he replied coldly. "Yet, you are ill..."

"If I may, Khan," Carol spoke up, having formed a theory in her mind. "Perhaps the combination of Human DNA mixed with Augument blood causes issues in pregnant women. I've been on this colony a long time and I have noticed that the women who are able to get pregnant don't keep the children without much difficulties and they are never able to bear another. Perhaps they are unable to?"

Khan's mouth tightened as he mulled over Carol's theory, "Or perhaps it will kill them," he replied coldly, his anger growing. "Have you never wondered why the population of my people does not grow quickly like other populations do? Procreation between us is near impossible because of the chemicals in our system and because of the many centuries we spent in cryostasis. Even with the non-Auguments we had in the tubes, it has been difficult to mate them with Auguments and the few successes we have had..."

"You keep the pregnant women in a building where they can rest and receive all that they need," Carol replied in a concerned voice, frowning at Khan. "How can you be sure they too will not become ill?"

Khan growled, "I am not sure they won't, but we have been living in this waste for five years and I refuse to remain on a desolate planet in Federation Space and die," he hissed. "Where is Miss Chandra?"

"You restricted her to monitoring subspace communications after she recovered from that thing you put in her mouth well enough to communicate," Carol replied coldly. "Nobody has given her the password to send communications and I'm sure if something important comes up, she will tell you about it."

Khan's eyes narrowed, "Put Susan Ling in cryostasis, Doctor Marcus, and then care for Demora as if she were your own," he ordered sharply. "Once I talk with Miss Chandra, we will figure out a way to inform Lieutenant Hikaru Sulu of his daughter. Just follow the darker leaves until you find the ship."

Before Carol could reply, Khan strode out of the lab and through the settlement to the rugged log structure where the communication console from the shuttlecraft had been reassembled and set up to capture any subspace communication within the borders of Federation Space. Admiral Chandra was sitting in front of the console, silently listening to messages and writing them on a broken PADD.

Admiral Chandra's uniform was loose and dirty with mud and bloodstains, but her face was clean and her hair was done up, "What are the most recent subspace communications?" Khan ordered sharply.

"I've written them all down," Admiral Chandra stuttered, her speech damaged by the arthropod.

Khan silently took the PADD and skimmed through it, frowning when he saw mention of a 21 year old boy named Joachim Stiles working on a cure for an illness caused by interspecies pregnancy and how Starfleet would benefit greatly once the cure was found. He also saw brief mentions of other news, but the mention of Joachim working to help Starfleet when his own people were dying stuck in his mind.

Anger filled Khan when he remembered that the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise and Starfleet had kept him from Joachim through various methods and by now, the boy would probably be all grown up.

Pursing his lips, Khan left the structure with the PADD and noticed footprints leading to the space where the cargo ship and pods had been dumped by the Romulans. Sighing heavily, he marched through the jungle and found Carol silently lingering outside of the cargo ship looking rather solemn and tired.

"Susan is in cryofreeze and I just wanted a moment before I went to find Demora," Carol explained.

Khan nodded and sighed, "What do you know of Joachim Stiles?" he asked in a dark voice.

"Why do you ask?" Carol asked in a shaky voice, not wanting to reveal that she had helped harbor Marla and Joachim for years on Alpha Centauri and then again on Deneva. "I don't know any Joachim Stiles."

Khan frowned, "I was a professor at Starfleet Academy for a time and during that time, I impregnated Marla McGivers and was forced to leave shortly thereafter," he explained, not believing Carol's lie because she sounded too anxious. "Why do you say nothing when your anxiety reveals the truth?"

Fear filled Carol's eyes as Khan backed her against the cargo ship with a menacing expression in his eyes, "I learned techniques from my Romulan friend before his people betrayed mine," Khan hissed as he placed his hands on Carol's face and began to chant in Romulan. "It is called a mind meld, my dear."

Agony filled Carol's soul as she felt Khan access her thoughts and memories, including the ones of her harboring and friendshipping Marla and Joachim up until she was captured, "Please," Carol whispered.

Khan raised an eyebrow, but ended the meld and smirked as Carol turned and threw up on the side of the cargo vessel, "Your co-operation has been most helpful," he said grandly. "Now, go and care for Demora before I really lose my temper. Your time on this planet can run out at any moment."

Carol staggered off out of the jungle and Khan swept through the trees until he found the camp where the Klingon crew had made a life for themselves since arriving, "Captain Targa, we must speak," Khan said in an anxious voice as he faced the small crew. "There may be reason to pay a visit to Earth."

San Francisco, California

"Zach, wake up," Zachary heard an anxious voice say. "Porthos isn't breathing. I think he's dead."

Irritated that Charlie was waking him up in the middle of the night during one of the worst storms that San Francisco had seen in centuries, Zachary opened his eyes and frowned as he saw Charlie and Kathy standing at his bedside with a wrapped lump in Charlie's arms that resembled a dog. Instead of pajamas, Charlie was wearing sweats, a t-shirt, shoes, and a jacket that he normally used for gym classes.

"No," Zachary whispered in an upset voice. "I knew Porthos was old, but I didn't think he'd die yet."

Kathy nodded and held back tears as she closed her robe around her pajamas, "Papa and Mommy are asleep, but if we wake them up, maybe they'll help us take Porthos to Jonathan Archer's grave in the morning cause Porthos was his and they should be buried together," she said in a somber voice.

"Papa's gonna think that's stupid and Jonathan Archer's buried in the Academy Gardens," Charlie replied anxiously. "I bet if I went and did it right now, nobody would know I had done it until morning."

Zachary and Kathy's eyes widened in horror, "Charlie, you can't go digging up that guy's grave!" Kathy replied anxiously, being careful not to attract attention. "I know he loved Porthos, but seriously..."

"As long as Grandpa, Grandma, and Michael are in bed, I won't get caught," Charlie replied anxiously as he carried the bundle over to the bedroom window. "Especially since I'm going out this window."

Kathryn's eyes widened as Charlie forced the window open and stepped outside, sighing briefly before he closed the window and took off into the night with Porthos in his arms, "I have a really bad feeling about this, Zach," Kathy said anxiously as Zachary got out of bed and began to gather some clothes.

Zachary said nothing as he quickly changed his clothes, "I'll go after him," he replied anxiously.

"Zach, you'll get sick if you're running around in the rain," Kathy replied anxiously. "You know that."

Realizing that Kathy was right, Zachary thought for a moment and silently went over to the comms terminal, "I'll call Pavel and Joanna and also Uncle Jim to help so Mommy and Papa don't find out," he said in an anxious voice, quickly sitting down to use the terminal and suddenly starting to wheeze.

"Crap, CRAP," Kathryn said in an anxious voice. "You start coughing whenever you get really scared."

Struggling to calm himself, Zachary staggered over to his dresser and grabbed the inhaler that his stepfather had given him to use to keep from getting sick during coughing fits. Hating the fact that being on Rura Penthe had caused such damage to him, Zachary silently used the inhaler and laid on his bed.

"We have to wake Mommy or Papa," Kathy said in an anxious voice as Zach slowly sat up. "Zach."

Zachary nodded and sighed as the medication began to take effect, "Yeah," he said anxiously.

Swallowing hard, Kathy silently left Zachary's bedroom and hurried to the bedroom that her parents shared, "Mommy, Papa, it's an emergency," she announced, flipping on the light and revealing both of her parents asleep in bed. "Porthos died and Charlie ran off to bury him in Jonathan Archer's grave."

There was a heavy silence and both Leonard and Arianne quickly sat up in bed, "What?" Leonard asked in a groggy voice, frowning at Kathy as he processed what she had just said. "Did you say Porthos died?"

"Charlie wrapped him up and is gonna go dig up Jonathan Archer's grave," Kathy replied anxiously. "Zach wanted to go after him, but he ended up having an attack and I decided to come tell you guys."

At the mention of Charlie's actions and Zachary having an attack, Leonard and Arianne shot out of bed and hurried into the common area, "Why didn't he come and wake us?" Leonard growled as he sat down at the comm terminal to put in a call to Security. "The kid's 16 years old and he's being..."

Suddenly, another light flashed on and Leonard and Arianne turned to see President Pike, who had been woken by the noise, come down the hallway with a robe over his pajamas and his cane in his hand.

"I thought the commotion wasn't going to happen until the Starfleet Expansion Project team reported to Starfleet Command tomorrow?" President Pike said in a calm voice. "It's the middle of the night, you see."

Leonard growled, "And Charlie chose the middle of the night to go out the window and to the Academy Gardens just because Porthos died and he wants to bury him!" he replied in a near shouting voice.

President Pike's eyes widened and Arianne sighed, "No use in getting angry, Leonard," she replied in a concerned voice. "Unfortunately, impulsive behavior is part of Charlie's disabilities and I know we've had reservations about medications and counseling before, but something really has to be done about this."

"And you might want to lower your voice," President Pike offered calmly. "Shouting won't do anything."

Arianne sighed, "If Security's got to get involved, you'd better phone Pavel because he won't be as hard on Charlie as some of those cadets are who are so eager to prove that they are big, tough thugs," she replied in a concerned voice as she walked over to Kathy. "Kathy, honey, you should go back to bed."

Swearing under his breath, Leonard quickly dialled Pavel's number and hoped he would wake quickly.

Golden Gate Apartments

Negative.

Joanna sighed heavily, briefly staring at the test stick before she threw it in the recycler and sank down on the toilet lid to compose herself before getting back into bed so Pavel wouldn't wake with concern about her sadness. They had married in 2271, four years ago, and they were still a childless couple.

After she had graduated, she and Pavel had married in anticipation that Pavel would be called up to serve on the Enterprise when it was refitted. During the initial stages of refit, however, Scotty and other Starfleet Engineers had discovered that the damage was severe enough that the ship would have to be scrapped and a new NCC-1701 would have to be built. The process had taken a very long, very tedious five years.

Captain Decker had reluctantly agreed to that and with Ilia away, he spent most of his time helping with the building process or visiting Starfleet Operations to keep Admiral Kirk apprised of the progress.

While waiting for the Enterprise to be completed, Pavel had enrolled in several courses and training programs that would help him to be Chief of Security on whatever vessel he was eventually assigned to and also took shifts at Starfleet Security to help his confidence. Since graduation, Joanna had worked at Starfleet Medical under the direction of everyone there and had found a mentor in Nurse Edith Kirk, as she too understood what it felt to sometimes feel as if they were outsiders in the massive Starfleet.

The sound of the comm terminal beeping suddenly pulled Joanna out of her thoughts and she listened as Pavel woke and walked over to it, "Hello, zees ees Lieutenant Chekov," she heard him say softly.

Sighing, Joanna emerged from the bathroom and silently returned to bed, frowning as Pavel nodded and quickly went for the closet, "I vill get a uneeform on and meet you zere," Pavel said anxiously. "Ower..."

Pavel paused at seeing Joanna awake, "Vat are you doeeing up?" he asked in a concerned voice.

"It was negative, Pavel," Joanna replied softly. "Why...why are you getting your uniform on?"

Pavel sighed, "Porthos died and your brozzer, Charlie, took off in ze night to go bury heem vith Admeeral Archer," he explained in a concerned voice. "Your fazzer commed me to go and find heem before ozzer Security men do because he is afraid Charlie vill get hurt. Your fazzer is also comming Admeeral Kirk."

Joanna's eyes widened and she leaped out of bed, "I'm coming with you," she said in an anxious voice.

Romulus

Jeris's eyes popped open as he suddenly felt Khan's voice in his head. Do you remember me, Jeris?

Khan, I do. Jeris allowed his mind to speak. The Senate said that they had marooned you...

My people and I were marooned by the Romulan Senate. Did you not know of their actions?

Suddenly feeling nauseous because of the intensity of Khan's anger, Jeris bolted out of bed and into the fresher, nearly passing out as he knelt before the toilet. As he emptied the content of his stomach into the toilet, lights flashed on and David hurried into the bathroom and gently touched his shoulders.

"Father, what's wrong?" David Marcus, a strapping, handsome boy of 14, asked in a concerned voice.

Jeris sighed heavily, "Khan Noonien Singh is trying to use what I taught him of the Vulcan arts against me," he replied in an anxious voice as he sealed his mind. "The intensity of his anger made me ill."

David nodded, the blonde hair inherited from his mother waving as he did so, "Let me make you some hot tea, Father," he said as he helped Jeris to his feet. "I thought you had sent Khan into exile?"

"He is in exile, son," Jeris replied softly as David guided him back to bed and gently sat him down. "I was his assistant years ago and he forced me to teach him as I had learned from the Vulcans a long time..."

David gently patted Jeris's shoulder, "Sit there, Father," he said softly. "I'll make you some tea."

As David rose and left the room, Jeris tried to think of how he could deal with Khan once and for all, as he was getting older and Khan's constant influence in his life wasn't good for his and David's future.

Starfleet Academy Gardens - San Francisco, California

As the rain continued to pour, Charlie silently finished digging the hole with the small spade he had gotten from inside the house and sighed as he laid Porthos's lifeless body at the forefront of Jonathan Archer's grave. Even though he understood Jonathan to be his father, he still hated the man, but Porthos was originally his and in his 16 year old mind, Porthos and his master should be reunited.

As Charlie sat there, trying to figure out how he could refill the hole, a large spotlight suddenly shone on him, "In the name of Starfleet, you are under arrest!" a loud voice suddenly shouted. "HANDS UP!"

Terrified, Charlie rose and nearly slipped several times as he bolted across the muddy grass to get himself either home or off campus as quickly as he could. Almost immediately, there was shouting and the lights quickly increased, prompting loud sirens to go off as if he were some hardened criminal.

Lightning flashed across the sky as Charlie felt himself being pursued through downtown San Francisco by several Starfleet Security officers and at least one Security shuttle. As he approached the Golden Gate Bridge that would either allow him to hide under it or run across the bridge to Sausalito, Charlie suddenly felt phaser fire whip past him and terrified, he ran down the steps to try and escape it.

Unfortunately, the footsteps quickly followed and as Charlie touched the last step, several phaser shots came whizzing past him all at once and the intensity caused him to slip, hit his head and arm on the pavement, and plunge headfirst into the water, "STOP!" an angry voice screamed. "I AM GOING EEN ZERE TO GEET HEEM!"

Groaning, Charlie fought his way to the surface and gasped as he saw a figure coming towards him wearing a waterproof headlamp, "Let me take hold of you," Pavel's anxious voice said. "Come on."

Fighting back tears of pain and fear, Charlie allowed Pavel to rescue him and pull him out of the water, "Bones, what do you make of it?" Charlie suddenly heard Jim say in a concerned voice. "Hey..."

Pain filled Charlie's entire body and as he slowly passed out, he heard his name being called.

Starfleet Presidential Mansion

"All this to bury a dead dog?" Admiral Barnett asked in a concerned voice as President Pike struggled to stay awake and comfortable in the chair that sat in front of his comm feed. "Chris, seriously, the entire summer staff of Starfleet Security were out chasing the kid and trying to figure out what he was doing after the sensory alarms went off at the gravesite. NOBODY goes there in the middle of the night."

President Pike nodded and sighed, "The summer cadets were all in lockdown for hours and alarms kept everyone awake because Command thought there was a real emergency!" Admiral Barnett ranted, anger in his tired eyes. "I know Charlie's your grandson, Chris, but he caused some real trouble."

"I'm aware of that," President Pike replied in a tired voice. "Will Academy Command press charges?"

Admiral Barnett shook his head, "No," he replied tiredly. "Just make sure the kid knows it's serious."

"When he wakes up, I will," President Pike growled. "Your illustrious summer staff shot at him and pretty much contributed to him going in the bay. I swear, those dolts need sensitivity training."

Before Admiral Barnett could reply, Zachary silently drifted by the open bedroom door, "Goodbye, Richard," President Pike said in a tired voice, desperate to get some sleep before the morning.

Fighting back a yawn, President Pike got up and wandered out into the hallway just in time to see Zachary drift into the living room, "Zachary, it's late," President Pike said as he followed after him.

"I had an attack, but I'm fine now," Zachary replied as he sat on the couch. "Is Charlie okay?"

President Pike nodded and Zachary promptly laid down, "Grandma said I'd be done my high school stuff in a couple of months and I know I can't go to Starfleet, but can I go to college?" Zachary asked softly.

"Have you discussed this with your parents?" President Pike asked softly. "Either of them?"

Zachary shook his head and yawned, "They'd get upset about losing me," he replied tiredly.

President Pike pursed his lips and Zachary promptly fell asleep, "President Pike, the group from the Starfleet Expansion Project has arrived via shuttlecraft at the San Francisco Shuttleyard," a voice suddenly announced over the public intercom. "They are currently getting cleared by Security."

"So much for getting any more sleep before work," President Pike grumbled in a tired voice. "Oh, well."

Starfleet Medical

"...It was negative and I don't know how to feel about it, Nurse Kirk," Joanna's voice said sadly.

Warmth was the first thing Charlie felt as he slowly drifted back into awareness and as he opened his eyes, he saw Joanna and Edith standing beside his bed, neither of them noticing that he was awake.

Quickly realizing that he had been apprehended and dragged to Starfleet Medical, Charlie attempted to move only to find that one wrist was restrained to a bedrail and the other was covered in driplines, all of them making noise when he tried to move, "Nurse Kirk, could you please get our father?" Joanna asked.

"Am I under arrest?" Charlie asked in a groggy voice, frowning as Edith left. "Why am I tied up?"

Joanna, however, didn't say anything and moved out of view, "You're restrained to your bed so you don't take off and try to go finish the job," Charlie suddenly heard a gruff voice say. "How are you?"

"I don't feel anything," Charlie grunted, wincing as the bed was raised slightly, revealing Leonard standing at the foot of the bed holding a stylus in his hand. "I just wanted to bury Porthos."

Leonard nodded, "Well, you got a sprained wrist, bruised ribs, a concussion, and hypothermia for your trouble, kid," he replied in a concerned voice. "You're also missing school today and will be watching the presentation the Starfleet Expansion Project group is going to give to Command on the vid-feed. I talked with your teacher and you will write a report on the presentation and hand it in tomorrow. Am I clear?"

Charlie nodded and cringed as he did so, "Try not to move your head," Leonard said in a gentler voice.

"Do I have to take meds cause I'm crazy?" Charlie asked in a tired voice. "They'll make me sick."

Leonard frowned, "No, but maybe when you're feeling better, we should discuss getting you involved in some sort of extracurricular activity to harness your energies," he replied calmly. "For now, I'll give you a choice of resting or having some breakfast. I'm on duty so Doctor Piper can attend the presentation."

"I guess I could eat," Charlie replied softly, frowning as Joanna suddenly left the room. "Jo?"

Even though he had been told by Pavel that Joanna's latest pregnancy test was negative and Joanna was upset, Leonard sighed, "Don't worry about Joanna," he replied calmly. "She's going to the presentation."

Starfleet Academy Auditorium

"Welcome back to San Francisco," President Pike said in a grand voice as he entered the auditorium and saw that Captain Harriman was talking with Commander Dawson while the rest of the group was scattered throughout the auditorium, silently preparing their parts of the presentation. "Commander."

Commander Dawson smiled, "It's nice to be back in San Francisco after five years," he said warmly.

"President Pike, I thought that you should know that the group experienced a slight complication in the Orient because we ran into evidence of Khan Noonien Singh conducting some sort of mental health facility there," Captain Harriman said in a somber voice. "We brought all the evidence back with us."

President Pike nodded as he suddenly spotted Hikaru seated near the podium looking ready to get sick all over the place, "What's with Sulu?" he asked in a concerned voice. "He looks like he's gonna be sick."

"Um, there is mention of a Jocelyn Darnell and a Joanna McCoy in the evidence," Commander Dawson spoke up in a nervous voice. "Jocelyn was apparently one of Khan's patients, as was Joanna and..."

Fury filled President Pike's eyes, "None of you are to approach Joanna with this information, do you understand me?" he asked in an unusually sharp voice. "I will do it after the presentation is over."

Before anyone could reply, President Pike strode over to Hikaru, "Lieutenant Sulu," he said calmly.

"President Pike," Hikaru replied nervously, looking up from his work. "Thank you for coming to greet us."

President Pike sighed, but didn't get a chance to speak because people started to come into the auditorium, people that included Pavel and Joanna. Instead, he nodded silently and walked over to a seat in the front row that he would watch the presentation from since he wasn't doing anything there.

Soon enough, the auditorium was full and while the rest of the group was seated in chairs to wait for their turn to present, Captain Harriman was standing at the podium looking very relaxed.

"Greetings ladies and gentlemen of Starfleet," Captain Harriman said in a commanding voice. "For the past five years, I have been in charge of overseeing the first phase of the Starfleet Expansion Project, which was created to enable both educational and work institutions across the world to be able to prepare and send their finest to Starfleet. I am very pleased to announce that the team has returned to report their successes and what they have learned over the past five years of their mission. I invite Commander Dawson to give the first report and we'll proceed from that point as I see fit to."

As Captain Harriman sat down and Commander Dawson stood up, Pavel and Joanna briefly looked at Hikaru for a moment and then looked around to see if any familiar faces were in the audience. They quickly spotted Jim, Scotty, Charlie Scott, Lorian, Stiles, Nurse Chapel, Leonard, Ambassador Sarek, Stonn, Dr. Sonak, Will Decker, Admiral Marcus, Anthony Marcus, and several other familiar faces.

For a moment, they didn't see Spock or Nyota, but as they were turning their heads back to the front, Joanna spotted Spock sitting on the back row looking rather intrigued as he took notes on a PADD and as Nyota was absent, Joanna assumed that she was busy with Amanda, Saavik, Valeris, and Tuvok.

Joanna sighed as she thought of how she and Pavel had endured the past four years without a child, drawing on their strengths to enjoy their marriage, "Vat ees wrong?" Pavel whispered gently.

"I'm just sad that it was negative," Joanna replied softly, gazing sadly at her husband. "I know you..."

Pavel sighed, taking her hand in his own, "I vant you to be happy and ve can see a specialeest about zees," he replied softly, smiling at her. "I do not blame you and I lowe you so wery much, Joanna."

"I love you too, Pavel," Joanna whispered, sighing as Hikaru suddenly stood and walked to the podium.

Silence filled the auditorium as Hikaru activated the stylus that held his speech, "Fellow members of Starfleet, I am Lieutenant Hikaru Sulu and I have spent the last five years assisting with the Starfleet Expansion Project in hopes of enabling civilian educational institutions and employment facilities to prepare exceptional individuals for service in Starfleet and send them here for training if that if the lifestyle they so choose to pursue," Hikaru said calmly. "I have personally been in the service of Starfleet for years and this project has helped me to grow and appreciate life in a way I never did before..."

Klingon Battle Cruiser

Khan sighed as he took a seat in a chair that was close to where Captain Targa was sitting, deeply pleased that the Klingons had listened and agreed with his need to go to Earth and not only find Joachim, but also make sure that Lieutenant Sulu of Starfleet knew that he had a young daughter.

Now, after leaving the colony in the hands of Carol, who promised on her own ethics and life that she would look after Demora and also the rest of the colony until the Klingons returned with the help that was so desperately needed, Khan would use the days of warp travel time to figure out what to say.

Normally, Khan had no issue with thoughts or how to express them, but he was going to meet his son and quite possibly, his son's mother and whatever man she married. If there was time, Khan also secretly desired to talk to the people who arranged for him to be kept from Joachim for many years.

Grateful for the silence, Khan allowed himself to drift into a state of meditation to put his mind at ease.

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