Disclaimer: I do not own Star Trek or any of its characters, only my OC - Kaitlyn Donovan.
This is the sequel to The Ripple Effect. It would be insightful to read it, but not completely necessary - though you may wish to at least read the last few chapters.
Query - What was the fall out after everything was said and done?
Broken Remnants
Chapter 2
Commander Kaitlyn Donovan looked up slowly from her PADD as she headed down the long corridor of the Secured Starfleet facility. Security had been tight, but her credentials had gotten her this far.
She'd been disturbed by the analysis of Khan's blood and the reaction that it had on the tribble and on Jim Kirk. She'd read over all of the information Leonard McCoy had compiled and found she had more questions that only he could answer.
She came to the last security check point and looked over the two young Lieutenants.
"Can we help you, Ma'am?" one of them asked as he ran a scanner over her.
"I'm here to speak to the prisoner." Kaitlyn stated simply.
The guard frowned, "Commander Donovan, you are not on the list of authorized persons to have contact with the prisoner. Who authorized this visit?"
Commander Kaitlyn Donovan clasped her hands and PADD loosely behind her back to appear non-threatening. "I did, on my own authority." She let out a slow breath, "I do not want to cause any problems, I just need answers. You may contact your supervisors and tell them that I am here and speaking to the prisoner." she stated. "ELSIE, override code Alpha Omega Delta authorization KDR 247." she commanded.
A moment later she was transported inside the secured room. "ELSIE, this is a Priority One Situation. Lock out all authorization codes other than my own. Allow visual recording and access, but no audio recording." she instructed as she walked over to the partition of the prisoner's cell.
He stood up and walked closer to the partition. He was very curious about her method of entry into the room. He was sure there was a shielding around it that prevented transporting.
"Priority One Situation understood. Good morning, General Donovan Reed." the computer security system acknowledged, in a simulated female voice.
Kaitlyn smiled slightly at her old moniker, "Good morning, ELSIE." She stopped in front of the transparent partition and watched the man look over her closely.
"You are the daughter of Trian?" he inquired - he had immediately recognized the striking resemblance.
"Yes." Kaitlyn nodded, the low resonance of his baritone voice was both calming and chilling at the same time.
"I loved your Mother. Where is she? I'd like to see her again." he stated.
"She was killed when I was four." Kaitlyn found it eerie how the conversation was similar to the one she'd had previously - like you couldn't take the man out of the memory.
His eyes narrowed, "Who killed her? Is he still alive?" he demanded.
"He has been dead for many years, by my own hands." she explained.
He nodded and seemed to relax slightly, "You are a good daughter." He crossed his arms and watched her again. "I find it fascinating how you got in here - past the guards."
Kaitlyn shrugged, "Only I have authorization to transport in here." She changed the topic, "I have a few questions to ask you."
He gave her a wry smile, "I suppose I should at least hear you out, since you will undoubtedly get in trouble for locking everyone else out of this room."
She shrugged, "I don't mind getting in trouble every once in awhile. What would you be most comfortable me calling you?"she questioned as she picked up a chair from against the wall and put it close to the partition that separated them.
"Khan will be fine."
"ELSIE, provide Khan an appropriate chair." she authorized.
A black, plastic chair materialized in his cell.
Khan nodded his thanks and moved the chair closer to the partition, just as she had done. He indicated for her to sit down first, then he did.
She leaned forward and frowned, "You must think that we are all corrupt and have a hidden agenda. I apologize for the way you have been used and manipulated."
Khan crossed his arms, "I find it curious that you are apologizing to me when no one else has."
"That's because they are too busy covering their asses - they can't even begin to start apologizing because they don't want to take the blame, the responsibility for you and your situation." she explained.
He watched her closely, "And yet you are willing to take responsibility - why?"
Kaitlyn shrugged, "If I hadn't left my former job, this would not have happened. So yes, I will take responsibility for this and I will correct the situation." she sighed softly.
Khan sat back and contemplated what she'd said, "You use to run this organization - that's why you have special access." he realized.
She nodded, "I did oversee this organization a long time ago - with a much higher standard of morality. Many things have changed over the years and I'm not pleased."
Khan studied her again, "The computer called you General, though you are wearing a Commander's uniform - how should I address you?"
"You may call me Kaitlyn." she put her PADD on the floor. "ELSIE, remote access my PADD and begin analyzing the data." she requested.
"Request acknowledged." the system replied.
"Has anyone asked you to detail what you were assigned to do?" Kaitlyn inquired.
"No, in fact, I have been left remarkably alone. I request reading material and they bring it to me with my meals." he shrugged.
"I would like to know what happened, from the moment you were woken up." she requested.
He quickly calculated the risks of telling her the truth and weighed it against possibly not gaining her support. He nodded and began to detail everything that had happened for almost an hour.
Khan looked up at her slowly, "They had suggested I find you - did you know that?"
"I heard a rumor." she nodded.
He leaned closer, "Do you know why? They only told me you were a threat."
Kaitlyn sat back in the chair, "Because of the position I had when I worked here, I could still come back and ask questions. I'm sure they were uncomfortable with that possibility." There was another possibility, but she was skeptical.
The secured system beeped, "Analysis complete." ELSIE stated.
"Report findings." Kaitlyn requested.
"Inquiry one - yes. Inquiry two - yes. Inquiry three - four hundred to five hundred years. Inquiry four - yes." ELSIE reported.
Kaitlyn let out a slow breath, "Thank you, ELSIE." She looked at Khan, considering whether she should tell him about the findings - or keep them to herself. If she was going to do what she needed to, she would need his cooperation. And, if she didn't tell him and he found out later, he would never trust her again. "I had ELSIE run a comparison of my DNA to yours."
"And what were your inquiries?" he leaned closer.
"Inquiry one - are we genetically similar? Inquiry two - is your genetic makeup that of Human and El-Aurian DNA that has been augmented and enhanced? Inquiry three - how long is your life expectancy, based on your genetic markers? Inquiry four . . ."
"Am I your brother?" he supplied.
Kaitlyn nodded. "I realized you may be related to me when I saw how your blood interacted and healed Kirk - it's the same thing mine does." she shrugged and picked up the PADD off the floor and held it loosely in her hand. She now realized why her Mother's friends had been so insistent that she not join Starfleet or the MACOs so long ago. Her Mother had gotten involved in human affairs and look what had happened! She frowned. None of her Mother's journals had mentioned anything about Khan or the Eugenics Wars. Though now that Kaitlyn thought about it, it seemed ridiculous that her Mother - who was a geneticist - hadn't documented that time period, because she had documented everything else in her seven hundred years of existence.
Khan watched as she frowned, "You are not pleased with the results?" he assumed.
Kaitlyn looked up slowly, "I'm not pleased that my Mother did not mention anything about this in her journals." She tilted her head slightly when she realized something, "You address our Mother as Trian - might I ask why?"
"I did not know she was my Mother. We were not raised in a typical fashion, we were created. She was my caretaker, my tutor, my doctor. I should have known she was more than that."
"Did you ever suspect?" she asked him quietly.
He let out a slow breath, "When she asked me to leave with her. She had found out their plans for us to overthrow the corrupt governments and bring peace to Earth forcibly. I was young - and everything I'd been taught and groomed for was to that purpose. I believed it was my destiny, so I told her no." Khan watched Kaitlyn, "I am sorry that you did not know Trian for as long as I did - she was a wonderful woman. Very caring and sensitive to the needs of others."
"Did you know she was El-Aurian?"
He shook his head, "No, but I knew she was different because she said she was going to live for a very long time. When did you find out?" he inquired.
"Not until I was 38, though this organization knew almost a decade before and never told me." she frowned again.
Khan lifted his chin, "So, they used you too." He thought carefully, "If you don't mind me asking, how old are you?"
"One hundred and thirty-six."
"Do you have children?" he questioned.
Kaitlyn nodded, "Eight. I have nineteen grandchildren and twenty-seven great children currently."
He noted the absence of a wedding ring on her finger and the way she rubbed at the spot absently. It was obvious to him that her husband had died quite awhile ago, though how long he wasn't sure. "Do you keep in touch with them?"
Kaitlyn looked up slowly, "I have recently begun to write them more frequently, but I am not heavily involved in their lives." She glanced at the PADD in her hands, "When my late husband died, I just wanted to be left alone and not be reminded of all that I'd lost - that's when I left my former job." She hadn't ever verbalized to anyone the reason she'd picked up and moved to Vulcan all those years ago.
Khan continued to study her, "It must have been very hard." She had been very honest with him, "Why are you telling me all of this?"
Kaitlyn stood up and he followed suit. "I just wanted you to know you are not alone. Though I do not in any way condone what you have done, I believe I understand your actions."
Khan looked down at her, "Really?" he sneered. There was no way this woman could possibly understand.
Kaitlyn stepped closer to the partition. "You were created and groomed to be a warrior - vastly superior to humans in strength and intellect. Trained in hand to hand combat and weapons, molded to be able to understand and analyze the strategic vulnerabilities of your enemies. You were awoken, the lives of your crew were threatened unless you did what they demanded. I've been manipulated before and my families' lives have been threatened - I understand." She watched him, then clasped her hands behind her back. "I'm offering to be your Advocate. You will be tried for the crimes you are accused of, but I will make sure that everything that has happened is brought into light."
Khan considered her offer. "What do you get out of this?"
She quietly picked up the chair and put it back against the wall. She looked at him once more, "I will do my best to get things rolling and get you moved to another facility. I will also have your people moved to a better facility to watch over their cyrotubes to kept them functioning optimally."
Khan rushed to the partition, his eyes wide. "You mean they are still alive?" he demanded. His breathing quickened. He'd thought Commander Spock had them all killed when the torpedoes detonated.
Kaitlyn nodded. She hadn't realized they hadn't told him. They should have, because it was a way to keep him under control. "You should have been told, I apologize again." She glanced at her PADD as it vibrated as it reminded her she had another appointment. She watched as Khan walked slowly to his bench and sat down heavily. "I will be back to see you later this afternoon."
Khan glanced at her and nodded. He was having trouble at the moment adjusting to the fact that his people were still alive. "May I see them?" he questioned softly.
"I will see what I can do." Kaitlyn glanced up slightly, "ELSIE, on my command allow previous authorizations to continue. Dematerialize the chair in Khan's cell. Continually monitor for any threats to the prisoner and alert me immediately. Do not allow your programming to be altered or removed without my explicit instructions. Understood?"
"Awaiting authorization code." ELSIE stated.
"Authorization KDR 293. ELSIE, transport me to the Federation Council Chambers." Kaitlyn directed.
Khan watched as she was transported away. A few moments later, the doors to the room burst open and six Security Officers rushed in.
"Where is she?" an Admiral demanded as he rushed in after them.
Khan simply shrugged and picked up the book on his cot. He opened it and ignored them. He couldn't help but wonder what abilities Kaitlyn had, because Trian had the ability to do quite a few remarkable things. He smiled slightly, she may be of some use to him after all.
XXXXX
Starfleet Medical.
Leonard McCoy looked up from his PADD as Kaitlyn entered Jim's hospital room. He immediately noticed her change of uniform. It was an all black pant suit, with a very tailored jacket - it also had no Starfleet insignia. The only thing that gave some sort of inkling to a rank was the matted black pips on her collar - five of them. "New uniform for First Contact Officers?" he inquired.
"Temporary Assigned Duty, different job." she shrugged.
Leonard put the PADD down on the table and frowned as he moved closer to her, "Did they give you a hard time?" He'd started to panic earlier when Spock was here and they'd gotten the call that she'd somehow broken into Khan's holding facility and had locked everyone else out. He rubbed her arm gently. He knew she could handle herself, but she was going to give him a heart attack.
Kaitlyn shook her head, "No - not after I made them see reason and understand what needs to happen."
Leonard McCoy sighed, "You didn't tell me you were going to be Khan's Advocate." He didn't understand why she would want to be his Advocate. Khan had killed so many people, destroyed so many lives.
She lifted her chin, she knew he'd be upset. "It is to our advantage if I am his Advocate."
Leonard's eyes widened as he stepped back, "You're using him again! What the hell's going to happen this time when he manages to break out?" He turned away from her and looked at Jim laying helplessly in the bed. Jim had sacrificed himself to save his crew and ship - all because Khan had tried to destroy them.
Kaitlyn watched as Leonard turned away from her, "A calculated risk, one which I am in no way taking lightly. And I'm not using him, but he is going to cooperate with me in the investigation." She pulled out her PADD from her jacket, "I also have another reason for being his Advocate, one which could be used against me. I'm sure you'll figure it out soon enough, if you'll analyze a few things on this for me."
Leonard heard the concern in her voice, then glanced back at her and saw the expression on her face. She was worried - and she never worried, or at least she never showed anyone that she was worried. He accepted the PADD.
Kaitlyn turned to leave.
"Will you be back tonight?" he asked her quietly.
She stopped at the door and calculated the probability, "No, but you can reach me through that PADD - it is encrypted and encoded to find me."
Leonard's brows furrowed, "Kaitlyn, please be careful."
She gave him a small smile, "I always try." She turned and left quickly.
XXXXX
Enterprise Engine Room.
"Good afternoon, Scotty." Kaitlyn smiled as she approached the Chief Engineer.
Montgomery Scott glanced up from the console and smiled brightly, "You're back! It's good to see you Commander."
It's good to see you too." She smiled at the ever present Keenser, "Could you give us a few moments?" she requested.
Keenser nodded and left them alone.
Kaitlyn looked at Scotty, "Mister Scott, I'm investigating Admiral Marcus' actions and I'd like your help. Would you be willing to take a trip with me?"
Scotty grinned, "Depends - where are we going?"
"23-17-46-11." she stated.
Scotty's grin faded, "Oh, that place." He took a deep breath, then nodded.
XXXXX
Kaitlyn stepped into the shuttle and sat down in the co-pilot's seat.
Scotty glanced at her as he had the shuttle doors close and the engine start up. "Did you change jobs?" he'd noted her different uniform in the engine room, but he hadn't wanted to ask her there.
"Just a temporary assignment." she shrugged.
"If you don't mind me asking, why do you want me to come along with you?" he asked as he flew the shuttle out of the Enterprise shuttle bay and headed to their destination.
"You've been there before, I'm hoping you'll notice anything that's been removed." Kaitlyn said. She pulled out her PADD and clicked on an icon. "Khan will also be assisting in ascertaining the facility."
Scotty gaped, "Khan - that mad man! I won't be letting him on this shuttle, Ma'am." he said firmly.
"Do not worry, Mister Scott - I am safely tucked away in my cell here on Earth." Khan stated from the screen on her PADD. I take it you on your way to the facility now?" he questioned Kaitlyn.
"Yes, I wanted to go over the layout of the facility before we arrived." she explained.
Khan nodded and used the PADD she had given him to show her the schematics and walk her through the facility and indicated where vital information and materials were stored. After he had gone through the schematics with her, he changed the screen to see her. "Kaitlyn, these are highly trained personnel. I do not know if they will accept your authority easily - no matter what the orders were that Section 31 sent them." he cautioned her.
Kaitlyn gave him a quick nod, "Understood."
Scotty looked worried, "Ma'am, I don't think we have but a few phasers in the compartment."
"We won't need them." She looked out the window as they approached the facility. She quickly typed in a few commands and sent it out to the facility. A few moments later, the huge bay doors opened.
Montgomery Scott raised an eyebrow, "Looks like they're expecting us." He flew in the hanger and landed on one of the landing platforms. A warning signal went off in the shuttle. "They're scanning us." he stated quickly.
Kaitlyn nodded, "That's standard procedure." she said calmly as she typed in a few more commands and sent them out. She stood up as Scotty turned off the engine.
He looked out the window and frowned, "They've sent out a welcoming party." he indicated.
She quickly took note of the men and their weapons, then headed out the shuttle door. She handed him the PADD to carry.
Scotty quickly raced to catch up with her.
Kaitlyn stopped before the five man team and looked them up and down. "Where is Captain Wheeler?" she questioned.
One of the men stepped forward, "He is busy at the moment. Perhaps we can help you two." he gave her a wry smile. His men chuckled.
"Get him here now." she ordered.
Scotty was growing apprehensive as the men reflexively tightened their grips on their rifles. He remembered his encounter with these types of men on the Vengeance.
"How about you two get back in your shuttle and leave?" the man suggested firmly as he stepped closer to intimidate her.
Kaitlyn slammed her left palm into his diaphragm, then right hooked his jaw and he fell to the ground unconscious.
Scotty's eyes widened as the other men aimed their weapons at them and pulled the triggers.
Nothing happened. The weapons did not fire.
Scotty watched as Kaitlyn stepped closer to the other men, and they stepped back.
"Get Captain Wheeler here. Now!" she demanded.
One of the other men nodded, "Yes, Ma'am." He opened his communicator and quickly called for the Captain.
Wheeler frowned at what he had witnessed on the monitor as he answered the comm. "Escort them to the Conference Room." he directed.
Kaitlyn smiled. She wasn't sure if he'd actually reply himself. "Don't worry boys, we'll find him ourselves. ELSIE, transport Commander Scott and myself to the location of Captain Wheeler, then transport these gentlemen into the Brig." A moment later, they were transported into the room Wheeler was in.
The Captain looked up, shocked that they were here with him. "How the hell did you do that?" he questioned.
Kaitlyn took a step closer to him, "You are hereby ordered to stop all operations from this facility. Captain Wheeler, you are hereby detained for questioning." she stated. She typed in a command into the nearest computer and the Captain was transported away.
Scotty blinked rapidly, "Who's Elsie?"
Kaitlyn glanced back at him as she quickly went through the systems of the facility and locked them all out.
"A very highly intelligent secured system." Khan stated from the PADD.
Scotty looked at the PADD, he'd forgotten that Khan could see and hear everything they did. He looked at Kaitlyn curiously, "But, how was it installed here? How do you have access?"
"Everything Starfleet has built since 2186 has ELSIE in it." Kaitlyn said distractedly as another user tried to stop her authorization from somewhere else in the facility. "Audio and visual, ELSIE." She quickly identified the person and brought him up on the monitor. "Lieutenant Clegg, stop your actions within twenty seconds or I will blow up the console you're at." she threatened. The Lieutenant quickly stepped away from the console. "Thank you, Lieutenant."
The audio in the room beeped, "Seven shuttles are approaching the facility." ELSIE stated.
Kaitlyn clicked on her screen and looked over their identification. She clicked on the comm, "Took you long enough to get here."
Admiral Robert Reed shrugged, "You didn't give me much notice to get a team of trusted people together. Is the facility secured?" he asked from his shuttle.
"Weapons have been disabled. Personnel are still onboard, but they are locked out of all systems." Kaitlyn explained.
"We will be there momentarily." he acknowledged and ended the transmission.
Scotty looked at Kaitlyn, "Who are you?"
XXXXX
TBC.
Reviews are greatly appreciated!
