I own nothing but my OC.

Previously:

"Ah, yes… my apologies. I promise to make it a cleaner break next time." Khan apologized carelessly, half teasing her. Although he really did feel a bit bad for injuring her, it was partly her own fault for not saying something sooner.

"Um, yeah… no. How about you just don't break any of my bones period next time?" Prima suggested, smiling wryly, clearly chagrined.

"Ahem." Spock cleared his throat, reminding the two superhumans of his presence. They both glanced over at the Vulcan, who was finally in his feet again, and he had his phaser trained on Khan, just in case the dangerous augment tried to make any sudden movements. Though Spock had initially been somewhat bewildered by Khan's sudden shift in temperament and their little exchange of friendly (?) banter, he had at least recovered enough to point out something rather important that Prima seemed to have forgotten. "Aren't you going to cuff him, Miss Dempsey?"

[[Chapter 5: Nobody Knows The Trouble I've Seen]]

When Kirk finally regained consciousness, he found himself lying on a bed in sickbay with a pounding head. He tired to sit up, but found it somewhat difficult when a dizzy spell came over him.

"Oh, I think he's up, Doc!" Prima announced, perking up slightly when she noticed movement on the neighboring bed. McCoy glanced over at his disorientated friend as he put the finishing touches on the splint on her broken leg. Although the Excalibur's ship doctor was no doubt perfectly capable of treating their injuries on his own, McCoy had insisted on taking charge of their care himself. After all, that was why he had been dragged along on this little venture of theirs in the first place.

"Ugh… what happened?" Kirk asked groggily. It felt like he either had a really good time the previous night, or he just got his ass handed to him.

"Well… according to Spock, Khan basically K.O.'d you, so the bad news is, you missed the whole fight." McCoy informed him. "But the good news is, your mask absorbed most of the impact, so even though I'm sure your head is still spinning, you were lucky enough to get away with only a light concussion. It's really quite fortunate no serious harm was done." He added, furrowing his brow slightly. At this point, he was just glad their crazy plan had worked without getting any of them killed.

"Well, I figured Khan wouldn't purposefully start off throwing out lethal blows, since he can be a little… vindictive…" Prima commented, smiling apologetically at the slightly dazed man. She had suspected he would most likely go in for slow torture before finishing the guys off, which was why she figured she had time to use the storm as camouflage before any permanent damage was done. She never would have been able to get close enough to land a blow on Khan if she had approached him straight on. Honestly, she was surprised Khan had given in so easily after learning her true identity. She had expected him to be angrier and a lot less pleased to see her, considering it was her fault that they were all even on the SS Botany Bay to begin with… Perhaps he had enough time to get over it...?

"And I think that may just be the understatement of the year." Kirk said drolly, giving his head a little shake, as though it would help clear it. "Damn. I can't believe I let myself get taken out so easily..." So much for his reputation…

"Don't feel too bad, Captain. He kicked all our asses." Prima stated rather carelessly, waving off his worries. "I mean, look at me. I've got two broken bones." Fortunately, her nose had already finished healing after she pinched it back into place.

"Wait. You mean… we lost!?" Kirk asked, frowning in confusion. And here he had thought Prima's plan just might be crazy enough to work…

"Um, no. If we'd lost do you really think we'd all still be alive to have this conversation?" Prima asked him, raising an eyebrow. "We took some damage, but we won in the end. Mr. Spock decided to get Khan processed and confined to his holding cell while Doc finished patching us up." She explained, smiling wryly. Actually, to be more precise, she was pretty sure Khan had let her win. For a moment it had been touch and go after Spock had rained on their parade by suggesting she handcuff Khan, but he eventually allowed himself to be persuaded to humor them after Prima pointed out that if he went on another rampage, Starfleet might decide that all augments were too dangerous to keep around since Khan was just one man, and he had already been the cause of so much chaos and violence for them, whatever his reasons. They weren't going to kill or torture him, so what was the harm? The rest of the crew was relatively safe at the moment, and they were much more likely to remain that way if he would try cooperating with Starfleet for a change rather than continuing to prove what a threat their race could be to them.

"Wait, aren't your wounds supposed to heal faster than a normal humans?" Kirk asked, wondering why she would need 'patching up'.

"Yeah, but it's not like it happens instantly, you know." Prima replied. "It still takes a little time, and certain types of wounds still need some form of treatment, or they won't heal right… like broken bones, for instance. If you don't set the bones properly, then when the reconnective tissue forms, the bone can come out crooked or misaligned, and then the only sure way to fix that is to break it again while the new tissue is still relatively weak, so it can be realigned and healed properly." She explained. "it can be a real pain in the ass, actually." She had learned that the hard way after she made the mistake of not getting a broken wrist treated soon enough.

"Wow, that sucks." Kirk said sympathetically. "But at least you don't have to be stuck in an itchy cast for six weeks."

"Yeah, at least there's that." She agreed, nodding sagely. "But I would've thought by now they'd have something better than that available… You know, like some special machine that you stick your injuries under, and voila, you're instantly healed… but I guess reality isn't always that kind, huh? I hear you don't even have a 'fold' button on dryers yet. So sad."

"If that's how you feel, then maybe you should invent one." McCoy suggested as he stabbed Kirk in the neck with the hypo, giving him something for his headache. "I'm sure you'd make millions on that patent."

"Ow! Hey!" Kirk protested indignantly. "How many times do I have to tell you not to do that!?" He demanded, chagrined.

"Don't be such an infant." Bones chided him carelessly. "We've got a girl with broken bones over here who's complaining less than you."

"Meh. That's because I'm used to it, and my Dad didn't raise no sissy. He'd always tell me 'Suck it up, princess!' and then give me a lollipop or two, depending on how good I was." Prima said, smiling wryly. She would have shrugged, but her collarbone wasn't quite done fixing itself yet. "It was like an inside joke between us."

"Sounds like you had a colorful childhood." McCoy said, raising an eyebrow. "You're father must have been quite the character." Pediatrician by day, secret serum developer by night…

"Yeah, he was pretty great." Prima said, smiling proudly. "Anyway, we'd better go check on how things are with Spock and Khan… I'm not so sure it's a good idea to leave them together for so long. The air seemed kind of tense between them…" Even if Khan knew logically that he his reason for bearing a grudge against the Vulcan was unfounded, seeing as his supposedly dead crew was actually alive and well, those kinds of intense negative feelings were not so easily set aside, and it was clear that the Vulcan still held Khan responsible for his friend's painful near death experience, since Kirk never would have had to risk his life to repair the core if Khan's attack on the Enterprise had not misaligned it in the first place, even if it was a tad illogical of him…

"Yes, and I have a few questions for Mr. Singh..." Kirk replied thoughtfully. Like who his mysterious benefactor was…

—∞—

"He wasn't always like this, you know… Khan." Prima suddenly started out of the blue as the three of them made their way to the brig. Kirk was walking beside McCoy while the doctor pushed her wheelchair for her. She found herself on the receiving end of a few curious stares from the crew members they passed in the corridor every now and then. One would think they had never seen a girl in a wheelchair before. Prima felt a bit silly sitting in it with such minor injuries, but McCoy had insisted that crutches would put unnecessary strain on her collarbone, and she was inclined to agree. It would heal faster if she left it alone and tried not to move too much.

"Like what? Homicidal?" Kirk asked rather cynically, raising an eyebrow, as he glanced at her.

"No offense, Miss Dempsey, but the man's a psychopath." McCoy added, obviously in complete agreement with his friend. As far as the good doctor was concerned, Khan was nuttier than a basket full of acorns.

"Yeah, I kind of noticed that…" She replied, grimacing slightly. She couldn't deny that Khan tended to exhibit some psychopathic tendencies, but he wasn't insane… not in the clinical sense. Actually, Prima believed he was really more of a sociopath, technically. Khan's behavior was usually too calculating and controlled to fall into the 'psychopath' category. It was only when he was extremely upset and/or disturbed that he became so erratic and disorderly, but then again, everyone tended to become more illogical when they were angry or frustrated, didn't they? And Khan had obviously been desperate, having been made to feel so alone and threatened in a strange world… He usually knew better than to let himself go postal and tally up a body count like this. "Listen, I know you might find this hard to believe, given your past dealings with him, but he's not as 'evil' as you think he is. It's not like he went around killing small animals as a child. I'm not trying to deny the fact that he's capable of accomplishing some truly heinous deeds, but that's not all he is. It might be hard to see now, but there is goodness in him too."

"Goodness?" Kirk asked, scoffing skeptically. "You're an augment too, but I don't see you running around on killing people!" He exclaimed incredulously, pointing out what he felt was an important difference between the two of them. Whatever his reasons, the fact remained that Khan had killed Pike and hundreds of innocent people under the guise of 'John Harrison'. Who knows what kind of terror and chaos he wreaked on the world during the Eugenics Wars!

Though Prima couldn't see him, McCoy nodded in agreement behind her. Prima might be a bit strange, but Khan made her look like a saint in comparison.

"Even the devil was once an angel, Mr. Kirk." Prima said pointedly, frowning slightly. "I myself am made up entirely of flaws stitched together with good intentions. And I'm not as innocent as you seem to think, Captain. I've made my fair share of mistakes, too…" She added somewhat regretfully as she stared ahead.

Kirk glanced at her out the corner of his eye after a moment of silence. Her eyes had begun to glaze over slightly as they peered vacantly into the distance, recalling events of another place and a time long past.

"Miss Dempsey?" McCoy asked tentatively, concerned over her sudden change in mien. She suddenly looked so tired…

"I noticed the pathetically thin file Admiral Marcus had on me lacked a sufficient description as to how I persuaded Khan to surrender and leave Earth…" She continued, blinking, as she shook her head to clear it. Between the cryogenic jetlag and the dulled but still ever present pain of her re-growing broken bones, Prima was beginning to feel that she could use a nap. She was totally ready to take back all of those times she had refused to one during kindergarten.

"Yeah… I've been wondering about that." Kirk admitted, unable to help the open curiosity that crept into his voice. Just how had she managed that?

"Yes." McCoy agreed. "Although no one seems to know how, I've heard you actually managed to pull off saving the world without shedding a single drop of blood. A remarkable feat in any circumstance, let alone with an opponent like that." He praised her.

Prima bowed her head slightly and averted her eyes, as though she were ashamed of what she was about to reveal to them. Kirk and McCoy were both puzzled by this odd behavior. For some reason, Kirk couldn't help but feel that there was something ominous about her demeanor. Why did she seem so hesitant to tell them…?

"… It wasn't like that. I'm no a hero, Doctor. And I wasn't looking to save the world." She replied solemnly, furrowing her brow slightly, as she raised her head again to meet Kirk's gaze. McCoy was just beyond her field of vision in his current position. "… Just a few. The few that mattered. In order to save the people I cared about… I did something terrible…" A heavy silence seemed to settle over them in that stark and narrow corridor as Kirk stared down directly into her somber eyes. A touch of guilt and shame… but also a flicker of acceptance, a dash of resolve, and a great show of resilience and inner strength shone forth from deep within those hazel orbs.

Kirk frowned slightly in confusion. What was she talking about? Had betraying Khan affected her that much…? He watched as she nervously licked her full, pink lips, and began to move them to form another sentence, but before she could say another word on the subject, the tense and fragile moment between them was broken by the intrusion of Captain Harris.

"Ah, Mr. Kirk. Miss Dempsey." The older man called out, greeting all three of them as he strode down the hall, approaching them from behind. "There you are. I'd like to commend you on a job well done." He praised them politely, before turning to Bones and greeting him as well. "You as well, Dr. McCoy." He seemed to be mighty pleased about something, despite having just completely ruined Kirk and McCoy's chance to hear what had undoubtedly promised to be something of great importance from Prima.

"Captain Harris…" McCoy returned the other man's greeting, after sparing a surreptitious glance between Kirk and Prima. Was it just him, or had things had been getting a little intense between the two of them for a moment there…?

"I see you, too, are going to pay our prisoner a visit?" Harris asked curiously. He admired their work effort. Most people would still be taking it easy in sickbay after a beating like that. "Shall we greet him together?" The captain of the Excalibur seemed excited to finally be encountering such an infamous criminal in the flesh. Despite being in the game longer than the young James T. Kirk, Harris's long career had been dreadfully dull when compared to Kirk's short but colorful and exciting career as a starship captain.

—∞—

The Brig

"Learn anything yet, Mr. Spock?" Kirk asked as they joined the Vulcan. Upon closer inspection, Kirk could almost swear his first officer was actually brooding. He looked uncharacteristically perturbed. In contrast, Khan seemed utterly indifferent to his stark light-grey, smooth-walled surroundings. If the dangerous augment was distressed to find himself back inside a holding cell, he hid it incredibly well. In fact, Khan looked almost relaxed, given the way he was practically lounging on the cell's fold-down cot, not even bothering to spare his captors a glance.

Kirk and McCoy noted that this display of behavior was markedly different from how he had acted when they had captured him the first time. What could this mean?

Captain Harris was also somewhat surprised when he saw their prisoner, but for a different reason. He frowned slightly as he regarded the augment. Other than appearing preternaturally calm in such a disadvantageous situation, Harris felt there was nothing visually exceptional about him. Sure the superhuman had excellent posture and well-developed lean musculature, but there was nothing incredibly remarkable about such things in and of themselves. For a genetically enhanced human who had committed monstrous crimes against humanity, the captain of the Excalibur felt Khan actually looked… disappointingly normal…

"He is being most uncooperative." Spock informed them, furrowing his brow slightly. He had been expecting some resistance on Khan's part, given their history together, but it was another thing entirely to have his existence completely ignored like this. Spock raised an eyebrow slightly when, he noticed Prima actually seemed somewhat relieved after observing Khan's more relaxed posture. Did that mean he should take Khan's current behavior as a good sign?

She knew it wasn't entirely just for show. Even if he was giving them the silent treatment, Khan had obviously decided to humor them and accept the situation. They wouldn't have to worry about him trying to escape or take over the ship. At least, not for now, anyway...

"Oh, are you giving Mr. Spock the cold shoulder, Khan?" Prima asked, smiling wryly. "That's not very nice of you." She chided the older augment lightly. To the men's surprise He finally sat up and turned to face them, though he was looking straight at Prima, as though they didn't even exist.

"Aren't you being a bit dramatic?" Khan asked her, raising an eyebrow as he eyed the wheelchair and the splint on her leg. Was all of that really necessary? Dr. McCoy was aware that Prima was an enhanced human, was he not?

"Nope. I don't heal the same way you do, remember?" Prima retorted, raising an eyebrow back, resisting the urge to cross her arms. "Unlike you, I'm delicate." An unreadable emotion flashed briefly in Khan's eyes, but it came and went so quickly, that even she almost missed it. "But I should be up and about again in half an hour or so." She reassured him, smiling softly.

Kirk glanced between the two superhumans. No way… was she…?

"We don't have time for this. Every minute we waste here, that woman who set him free is getting further and further away from us! He's obviously trying to buy time for his accomplice to escape." Harris stated, frowning with disapproval. "Who knows what the two of them have planned…" He furrowed his brow, glaring sternly at Khan. "I am Steven H. Harris, captain of the USS Excalibur. Stop wasting our time and tell us what you know. Who is she, where is she and what is she after?" He demanded firmly. Prima's eyes widened, as did McCoy's, both coming to the same realization, possessing a bit more background in psychology than the others.

"Whoa…" Prima uttered quietly, just loud enough for Khan's enhanced hearing to pick up, as she resisted the urge to face-palm. It looked like Captain Harris really didn't know how to talk to people like Khan at all… Pushing someone like Khan too much was not wise. It only made them want to push back.

Khan simply stared back at the older-looking man, clearly unimpressed.

"Really, Captain… is that the best you can do?" He asked Harris calmly but also somewhat mockingly. "Ah, I see… This is your first time interrogating a real prisoner, isn't it?" More than anything, it smacked of the same tone an exasperated adult might use with a child. Khan could easily tell that while the prideful and seasoned captain might have extensive experience commanding a starship, he was painfully inexperienced when it came to personally handling incidents such as this. If this was how it was going to be, then he would actually prefer to talk to Kirk. At least he knew how to ask the right questions.

"Why, you—!" Harris growled, clenching his fists. He was normally a very level-headed man, but there was something about this man that just got under his skin! And He had embarrassed him in front of another starship captain and his officers as well! Thankfully, before Harris could embarrass himself further by shouting a few choice words at the infuriating augment, the voice of one of his bridge officers sounded from the brig speaker.

"—Captain. We're receiving a distress signal from another ship within the near vicinity." His navigator, Lin, informed him via the speaker. "You're needed on the bridge."

"Understood. I'm on my way." Harris replied dutifully before casting one last glare at Khan. The older captain narrowed his eyes at his prisoner. "This isn't over." He warned Khan as he turned to leave. Not by a long shot. Unfortunately, his best effort to intimidate the other man had absolutely no effect. Khan seemed positively bored as he watched Captain Harris make his strategic retreat to the bridge in order to deal with the timely emergency that had just so conveniently cropped up.

"Distress signal…? Should I be worried?" Prima asked, furrowing her brow slightly with concern. She had a bad feeling about this…

"It's probably nothing…" McCoy tried to reassure her, but he didn't sound too convinced.

"How odd. I do not recall another Starfleet vessel being stationed in this area." Spock commented. Before they had left for this mission, he had taken the liberty of checking, on the off chance that they should require more assistance with their mission. One could never be too careful when dealing with a man like Khan…

"Neither do I." Kirk agreed, furrowing his brow slightly. What was this ominous feeling in his gut… Why did he feel like something was about to go horribly wrong?

"Um, Khan… this doesn't have anything to do with your new friend, does it?" Prima asked tentatively, hoping her suspicions would prove incorrect.

"Can't say. It is possible… To be honest, I didn't bother asking about her plans. I didn't particularly care who she was or what she was up to at the time." Khan stated calmly, finally gracing them with an answer to their questions.

"A mysterious woman shows up and saves you, and you don't even bother to get her name?" Prima asked skeptically, raising an eyebrow at him.

"She said she was 'a fan', and she wanted me to provide her with a suitable distraction for Starfleet." Khan replied unapologetically. "I had more important things on my mind at the moment, such as revenge for my supposedly fallen comrades. I thought you and all of the others were gone. I didn't nothing else mattered to me any more. She was intent on using me, so I decided to let her if it would further my means to reach my own end." He explained stoically. "You gentlemen really should thank Prima. If not for her, I would have undoubtedly killed you both in order to avenge my crew." He stated matter-of-factly, glancing at Kirk and Spock. They really had no idea just how fortunate they were that they had been forced to bring the revived Prima along with them. He never would have believed the truth that his crew was still alive had he heard it from anyone else. He never would have stopped. His onslaught would have been relentless. Nothing short of Khan's own death would have been able to bring an end to his wrath.

And Prima knew this. It was why she had been so quick to agree to help them capture him, to ensure that he would be taken alive. She didn't make Khan leave Earth so he could throw his life away like that and die alone on some alien planet.

"That, I do not doubt." Spock replied calmly to Khan's chilling statement.

"Yeah, thanks, 'Prima'." Kirk told the girl, patting her on the shoulder. Khan narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Uh, your welcome?" She replied with a slightly strained smile. "Sorry, but could you not do that? My collarbone is still a little sensitive…"

"I'd appreciate it if you didn't break her, Jim. I just finished putting her back together." McCoy quipped drolly.

"Anyway," Kirk said, removing his hand from her shoulder and focused his attention back to the matter at hand, "If she really didn't tell Khan anything, then that puts us back at square one. We still have no idea who she is or why she would do this."

"It might help us figure out the why if we at least knew who we were dealing with." McCoy said thoughtfully, nodding to himself.

"But how can we possibly hope to discern her identity when not even Starfleet's vast computer resources could not ID this woman from the images captured by the security cameras?" Spock questioned. Without a clear shot of her face, there was nothing to run against their facial recognition software.

"The cameras might not have seen her face, but Khan did." Prima pointed out, suddenly lighting up as an idea came to her. She glanced expectantly at the older augment, whose lips curved upwards into a slight, somewhat amused smile.

"I see. Yes, I suppose there is always that method…" He said, instantly understanding where she was going with this. Even if he didn't know her name, there was still a way he could help identify her… Khan couldn't care less about helping Kirk and Spock, in fact, he was reluctant to do Starfleet as a whole any favors, but if there was even the slightest possibility that woman's plans were going to put Prima in danger as well, then he could not allow her to continue.

"What method?" Kirk asked curiously.

"Don't worry. It's a simple but effective trick they used to use in the past." Prima said, grinning. "All I need is a pencil and some paper."