= II =

Tilting her head back to get a better look at the bruises that now lay waste to her throat, Mira sighed. She hadn't been lying; she took herself to sickbay and fixed herself up. The bruises were bad but she could at least talk at her normal pitch… well barely but she wasn't cringing every time she said a word. In a couple of days, no one would even know she'd been held several feet in the air and had the life nearly choked out of her by a possible none-human. Mira, lowering her head, sighed as she recalled yesterday's events.

Clearly something was being kept from her; she wasn't stupid, but she had to wonder if things hadn't of been screaming at her in the face would she have even noticed. Mira shook her head, she wanted to know what was going on. Harrison had gone back to his silence and not said a word but he didn't completely ignore her. His gaze had been locked on her the entire time she spoke after she had returned from her quick trip to sickbay but that's all he did. Just stared at her and while he did Mira's mind recalled the dream she had before… of those eyes starring straight at her. Quickly giving up getting any information from Harrison, Mira left him at his lab and returned to their quarters, grabbing her personal PADD once she entered her own room and set herself to work.

Looking up anything related to Commander J Harrison but oddly didn't find much of anything… what she saw was what she already had… except now there was a picture of him. Mira wasn't sure what she was hoping to find but not finding anything at all had stopped her for a while, not sure what to make of it… she knew there was no way in hell that someone could barely have anything on them, no not in this age but then Mira got the idea to look for his face, not his name, there wasn't a chance in hell no one noticed that face and didn't have something to say. What she found she wasn't entirely sure of, there were several pages of content but she had skipped over that for the time being and went straight for the pictures, wanting to make sure it was indeed Harrison she had found.

On her screen stood John Harrison but under the title is read 'Khan Noonien Singh – The Best of Tyrants'. Mira had stared at the picture in disbelief, it wasn't because of the name change, no, it was because of the date in the corner of the picture. He stood perfectly straight, hands clasped behind his back and eyes forward. He was wearing loose slacks and a tight fitted sleeveless shirt, hair in place and feet bare, he looked just maybe a little younger but still as beautiful as he was… is now.

Mira moved her eyes from him to the woman and the other man in the photo, they were also beautiful. The woman who, Mira noted looked very similar to Harrison, had black hair, pale complexion and vibrant green eyes but she lacked the blue he possessed, she stood straight, hands also clasped behind her back, and long hair in a braid that was cast over her shoulder. The other man in the picture was vastly different in appearance, dark blonde hair a mess, it honestly looked like he had just gotten out of bed, stubble over his face, slightly tanned skin and brown eyes. The man also stood tall, hands clasped behind his back, the only thing similar -besides the posture- was that he was as tall as Harrison… or Khan or whoever he was… is.

Mira had been floored by this, she had put her PADD down but not before saving the picture to her hard drive and took a few breaths as she let her thoughts run wild. The man in the picture and the one she was sharing quarters with looked exactly the same and while the world has been known to produce doppelgangers; never in that precise detail. There is always something off with the twin.

After trying to think of a good explanation to what was going on, Mira gave up trying to figure it out and decided the material at her finger tips could probably help her more than her imagination could but when she picked up her PADD again all of it was gone. She hadn't really been paying attention to how long she had been in her own little world but it was apparently long enough for someone to wipe anything about Khan Noonien Singh from the network. 'What the hell has Marcus done?' Mira questioned to herself as she stared wide eyed at her blank screen. All the data she had was now gone and lost to her save for that one picture.

She had wondered why but then instantly knew, she had used his picture instead of the name she saw, maybe if she hadn't then the information would still be there but maybe not… Marcus was thorough in his plans when he wanted to be.

And now Mira stood in front of her mirror, pulling up her turtle neck to hide the marks from yesterday that Harrison… Khan had left. Dressed in her uniform blues, in her opinion it honestly wasn't that bad of a uniform. It was comfy, while the skirt may have been short it wasn't restricting which allowed her to move freely, she just needed to be careful when sitting down. What she loved right now was the undershirt, normally she would wear the sleeveless undershirt but decided for the long sleeved turtle neck one today not actually planning to do work. No today, she was going to get her answers and that was that, her mind made up.

Leaving her room with a quick scratch and kiss to Puffins, Mira headed straight for Harrisons lab, not surprised when she found him there, neck deep in work. She stepped into the room and said his name "Commander Harrison" but got no response, not even a twitch of acknowledgement and so bracing herself as best she could for any kind of attack, Mira stepped onto what she perceived as the proverbial landmine. "Khan" Mira said, quietly, tilting her head slightly and narrowing her gaze on the man before her. As his name rolled off her tongue she saw him freeze in place and tension take hold of him as he slowly shifted so he could look at her, rage boiling beneath his cold exterior.

"Oh you are a very good liar" he said after a few seconds of starring, a wicked smile coming to rest upon his lips. "I believed you yesterday when you said you didn't know anything" he spoke, getting up from his spot and taking a small step forward, eyes narrowing at her, a predator look to his gaze. Mira following his movements in reverse and took a small step back "I didn't lie, I didn't know and I still don't." she said quickly, trying to be mindful of her surroundings as he took another step and she took one to the side this time. Mira kept her gaze on him, and his was locked on hers and she saw that he didn't believe her so she quickly amended "I looked up your face, no one forgets a face like yours, not even history." She said hastily, taking several steps away from him when he rounded the corner of the table and his wicked smile grew, Mira would be lying if she didn't admit she wasn't at all scared but she hadn't worn her bracelet today, so if she found herself in another similar situation like yesterday she could deal with it.

"And what did your history have to say about Khan?" he spoke the words carefully, each coming off with a strange sort of smugness mixed in with a warning of sorts.

She heard it loud and clear. 'Careful or you die' Mira thought. "I don't know, I was only able to see a picture of you and two others. A female and male" Mira spoke taking several steps back as she saw his gaze harden at the mention of the other two, not noticing the stool behind her as she bumped into it. Turning her head to look behind her for only a split second before she felt a hand on her shoulder pushing her backwards and into the wall, knocking the stool to the ground as she was pushed back. Mira's arms coming up to push Harrison... no Khan away from her but was stopped as he grabbed her wrists and pinned them to either side of her head. Because this situation wasn't bad enough, Khan took another step forward and pressed his body to hers, his head dropping just above her ear "What else did you see in this picture of yours?" he whispered the words, the last three screaming seduction and while Mira knew this sort of thing worked on people, she was a little disappointed it was working on her, flustered and very uncomfortable she stammered out her answer.

"I don't know, sort of… I mean it had a date and your name… it said 'Khan Noonien Sigh, the best of tyrants.' It said the picture was taken 300 years ago. That's it, everything else was deleted before I could look".

Still pressed against her Khan pushed himself further into her, making Mira squirm as she could feel every part of him and though any other time, she was sure different thoughts would have floated around in her brain. However right now she was focusing on the fact it was getting a little hard to breathe and her ribs were hurting and then he was off of her, stepping back and dropping one of her arms but kept a very tight hold of her right wrist and then he was moving, nearly dragging her with him.

It had only taken a few seconds to figure out where they were headed and as soon as they arrived, Khan waited for the door to their quarters to hiss open, dragging Mira inside once it was and waited again for the door to shut before he did anything. Mira was once again against a wall with him pressed flush against her, his free hand coming up to her chin and lifting her head so she could look up at him and he held her there "You will never say my name again, you will not acknowledge that you know it and you will call me Commander John Harrison." he said, spitting out his title and name with such disgust and malice, with such emotion Mira didn't know was possible.

Then he shoved off of her, throwing her wrist back at her like it had been some disgusting thing he no longer wished to touch. Khan looked at Mira before side stepping and going to leave but Mira wasn't having any of that, she wanted answers and he was going to give them to her. She was sure he would more then likely hate her more after this but she didn't care. Honestly, Mira was pretty sure his opinion of her was already at it's lowest and so she didn't fear it getting any lower, not thinking it could.

"I want answers Khan." Her arm shooting out to get in his way and though she had very little doubt that he could remove it by any means, she wasn't backing down. Mira figured a broken arm was nothing compared to the answers she could possibly get and it was better then standing in his way, a broken arm was better than a broken body and would be much less painful. He turned his head quickly ready to spit whatever threat he could think of at her but Mira started talking first. "I wont say your real name if you don't want me to but I will have answers, what the hell is going on? What the hell did Marcus do?" she demanded, holding her ground and though she was under the ever fierce gaze of his she wasn't backing down or giving up this time. After a few heavy heart beats, Khan stepped away and moved towards the couches. Sitting with such grace, Mira wouldn't think a man of his height or build could really possess, he gestured to the other couch opposite him, taking his invitation swiftly as she could, Mira sat and waited.

"I am Khan Noonien Singh. I was asleep when your Section 31 found my ship. I alone was revived but I was not alone on my ship. My crew. 72 lives are being used to control me." Khan explained, each word picked with care as he looked at her, emotion; pain and love screaming through those words.

Mira's face changed, sadness taking hold. While she couldn't understand the bound that came with having a crew, she knew what a crew was, what it meant, it was a family… his family was being used and threated against him. "I don't understand… why revive you? Why use your family against you?" Mira cursed internally as she let the word slip, she had meant to say crew, not entirely sure how family would have gone with him but it didn't seem to have any effect on the outside but Mira saw the flash of pain brighten before disappearing from view in his eyes. "Because your Admiral Marcus needs my mind, my savagery to help him and I would not have given it to him otherwise." he continued, all emotion that was there now locked up tight and under his cold shell.

"If I do not comply with his commands then he will kill them and make me watch." Mira didn't miss the emphasis he put on those two words. She understood what he was saying and while she didn't particularly like Marcus she couldn't believe his cruelty, looking down at her hands in her lap Mira's expression went pensive as she thought "He'll give them back to you right? I mean you wouldn't be here if he hadn't said as much… right?" Mira asked, looking up to meet Khan's gaze. He didn't answer her right away, he just stared; evaluating her it appeared and then he nodded. "I will have my crew… my family back." and that was all he said, she got the gist; Marcus may have promised to return Khan's crew but he was already using him, how long would that go on for… 'Until he's useless.' Mira thought, which meant more then likely Khan would take his crew back and from the way he had made it sound, kill anyone and everything that got in the way. Mira nodded as thoughts overwhelmed her for just a bit before Khan pulled her from them. "Tell me Doctor Mira Sullivan, what did he tell you?" Mira didn't miss the bit of sarcasm he used when saying her title.

"He said you just got back from an undercover mission, the extraction was messy and that you might be dangerous." Mira told him what Marcus had told her. For a long while neither said anything, Mira wasn't looking at Khan as her mind raced with thoughts about the situation she had been put in. "He said I was dangerous and yet sent a Doctor to be my jailer, I am curious. What do you possess that a highly trained killer does not?" Ripped from her thoughts by Khan's voice yet again Mira looked up and stared at him wide eyed and shook her head "Nothing…? I don't… I'm not special… I'm just a Doctor" she explained, her stuttering cringe worthy. "I'm… I specialized in Genetic Experimentation and Engineering, I guess that's why…" Mira rambled off lamely, she didn't want to talk about the real reason or explain it to Khan.

The people who knew… they treated her differently… like she was a tool, like a weapon to be handled and then put away until she became useful again, most would go about trying to manipulate her in different ways, she had no doubt that Khan would be the same.

Quickly looking down again not being able to meet Khan's intense gaze, Mira muttered her question. "How… why do you want me to pretend I don't know who you are?" Mira herself could barely hear her own question and was vastly surprised when Khan replied not seconds later. "Because the day you arrived at Marcus's office I was brought in first, he threatened my crew that if I did not play the fiction of John Harrison and pretend to be nothing more than that around you, to you, he would kill… some of them." Khan said, stopping and amending himself at the end.

"Enough to prove his resolve and enough of them left to keep me on his leash" Khan seethed out the words, his rage boiling again and Mira simply nodded, her next question leaving her lips before she could stop it "I still don't understand… why does he need you? Why are you so special?" Mira could tell he wasn't entirely human, not anymore from the way he had kept her in the air without struggle, dragged her to their quarters and just his mind. Nearly everything about the man screamed experimentation if one looked closely enough, even his looks and body movements. Khan then grabbed and held her glance once again "Because I am better, superior to any mind at his disposal" Mira wasn't sure if the subtext was meant but she saw and read it.

'He really isn't human' Mira thought, staring at him full on now. Apparently she had said that out loud because Khan laughed at her, "I am human but I was made to be greater and I became more, I am an Emperor" Mira then understood, recalling the date on his picture, the strange way he talked -an old Victorian style if she had to guess- "You were a genetic experiment, an Augment" Mira had of course read about them, she had once searched the globe for biogenetic materials and came across a few books about Augments, the superior humans, created three-hundred years ago.

Made to be weapons and far greater than any normal human could be. All of their senses, five times stronger then normal humans. Strength, speed, genius level IQs and then some. But there was a defect she had read about, something with their brains; they hadn't developed properly and because of that their morale compass was skewed. Naturally arrogant, ambitious and prone to aggressive and violent behaviour. Mira recalled reading about them being wiped from the face of the planet, killed for being what they were, for being born and it filled her with a sense of dread but then she smiled to herself, they -Khan and his family- had found a way to survive and though it was sad it filled her with some joy.

Without a word, Khan stood up ignoring her now and walked to the door only stopping for a fraction of a second before telling her… no commanding her "You will not speak that name, you will not say my name ever." once those words were out he was gone. Mira didn't look up from her lap this time, she had of course heard him though and nodded her head, she had heard the sadness that was buried deep. She couldn't imagine being someone else, being told to be someone else and threatened that if they ever slipped some of their family would die, even as Mira tried to think of it her heart clenched with pain. As soon as Mira was completely sure he was gone she let out a breath and leaned back against the cushions, she was thankful to have her answers but now she had more questions and her morals screaming from the rooftop. How could someone -the head of star fleet no less- do that, use someone's family against them.

They were supposed to be the better of the galaxy, to lead and set an example for generations to come… and yet they weren't doing that, what Marcus wanted to leave behind was war and while she figured in the end he did want peace, what he was doing would not achieve it "Great example we're leaving" she muttered before closing her eyes, she had no idea what she was going to do. "This blows".