Stardate 2260.8.27, Io Station
In the few days to come since April moved into Khan's quarters a bed had been set up in what was once his office. The desk had been removed and placed in his bedroom giving her space to set up her belongings. She had obtained a dresser, which in reality was all she needed. Her books stacked neatly on top and her uniforms folded crisply in the drawers below. The new bed wasn't large, and it was firm. She was given a single blanket and pillow and much to her delight it wasn't overly comfy. It was just like the bunks you would find in the barracks for the rest of the soldiers.
The first night lying in it she fell asleep quickly. It was the best nights sleep she had gotten in a long while. She woke to the sounds of Khan moving about the apartment and inevitably him leaving for the day around 0700. This allowed her free range of the living space to get a shower, dressed and some food and coffee.
Seeing his belongings in their shared space allowed a sense of comfort. It meant the space wasn't occupied by just her alone and that even if he wasn't there physically it gave her a sense of calm.
In the evenings she returned first and would spend most of her time on the couch in the living area or in her room going over her reports to send into Marcus. When she was reading she wasn't disturbed and hardly saw Khan. He would occasionally come out of his room, get water or food and go back inside. In the living space he hardly said a word to her. It was only when they were working did he talk to her.
Her presence seemed of little consequence to him now. It was running so smoothly and efficiently that they had a few prototypes finished and would be able to be mass produced once Marcus had given his final order.
Today around 0630, she had allowed herself to sleep in a little longer than normal. Getting up she did her morning routine of getting out of bed and doing a few push ups and sit ups before showering and dressing. Walking out into the living area she sat down on the couch and produced her PADD she left on the table. This wasn't her personal one but her work one and she began to go through her list of projects that had been completed and organizing them by percentage of completion. It was then her communicator beeped and she opened a message from Khan.
Your presence is required in the lab immediately. April furrowed her brow as she got up and walking out of their quarters she headed towards the primary lab.
The walk was uneventful, but she turned the corner and looked up from her PADD again to see Khan's back facing her. It would have been normal if it weren't for the fact he was indeed facing someone else. April's heart thrummed in her chest as her eyes met Marcus'. He looked at her, his lips curving into that smirk she always hated. Walking up to the new arrival party which consisted of Escobar, Lorrain, three MACO's as well as what appeared to be due to his rank on his uniform a Colonel.
"So glad of you to join us Major, we where just talking about you." Marcus said to her and she nodded as she walked up and stood next to Khan.
"All good things I hope." she mused and he put his arms behind his back and looked her for a moment. "We weren't expecting you for another month."
"I thought I would drop by and visit. No harm in that is there?"
"No sir." she said evenly. Khan noticed that she retreated into herself. All sense of sarcasm or strong will was deflated in an instant as she became this emotionless soldier once more. The effect Marcus had on her was annoying if not cumbersome.
"Harrison tells me you've completed four prototypes." The Colonel said.
"This is Colonel Roman. He's apart of my staff, head of the research department. He wanted to have a look at what Starfleet was concocting out here at Jupiter Station." Marcus said and April saluted.
"I've also heard a great deal about you Major Sommers. Your work speaks for itself." Colonel Roman praised. He was a shorter man, broad shouldered with brown hair. His eyes were a soft shade of hazel with crinkles around them from what April would assume to be years of smiling. He didn't seem like a harsh man but he definitely had an air to him.
"So these prototypes. When will we get the break down of those?" Marcus asked and April looked to Khan.
"They are not in final phase for testing. Merely in the conceptual stage." Khan stated.
"Major Sommers relayed that they are finished products." Marcus frowned.
"They are assembled. Tested however, no. They are not calibrated for normal output of human handling. I would more along the lines say they would do well on the hull of a starship." April said feeling like she wanted to roll her eyes at this point. Marcus didn't seem too pleased at her comment.
"I was expecting more for my first visit." Marcus glared at the two standing before him. April was about to say something but Khan interjected before she had the chance to retort.
"The visit was early. I can have a few calibrated within the day. However it will take me a whole day. If you like we can schedule a demonstration for tomorrow." April had to raise a brow and look to Khan and he simply ignored her, his gaze never leaving Marcus. The focus Khan had on this man was enough to intimidate most but Marcus seemed as cool and relaxed as ever despite the hard look in his eyes. Marcus pursed his lips and nodded.
"Alright. Well it was longer than I wanted to stay, however we can spare a day. Major, join me in the Admiral's table with the Colonel at 1700."
"Sir I think my energy would be better spent here in the lab helping Commander Harrison with the prototype calibration." April said and Marcus raised a brow.
"It wasn't a choice, Sommers. It was an order."
"Yes Major, I think you should attend. You can fill the Admiral in on your reports in person." Khan stated now looking at her. The two of them shared a gaze as something in Khan's look suggested more. April wasn't a mind reader but she assumed he wanted her to keep the Admiral and Colonel occupied and out of the lab. She could work with that, however she would have rather avoided higher ups all together. April nodded and looked back to the Admiral.
"Apologies sir, I just wanted to make sure everything was perfect for you."
"Noted. We will see you later. Colonel." Marcus turned and April and the others let out a salute before standing straight. She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose when Escobar, Lorrain, the MACO's and anyone that wasn't her and Khan were effectively exited from the lab. April took up a stool as she sat leaning her cheek into her left hand and grit her teeth feeling exponentially annoyed.
"Well, this is rather annoying." Khan said as he walked up to his work bench and began to fiddle with some machinery. April looked at him and took him in. He seemed so tense having been in the same room with Marcus. She could see the weariness on his face and the way his hands seemed so stiff rather than nimble when he worked. A sign of agitation. Whether or not Khan wanted to admit it, April now knew how to read him a little better. His moods were not foreign to her anymore but rather a symphony. One just needed to listen.
"What am I going to say to him later?"
"What would you normally say in situations like that?" he countered as he peered over at her.
"I wouldn't say much. I always let Marcus do the talking."
"You know that's out of the question silly girl." he snapped a bit. "You need to be your utter best or he will suspect our little truce. We can't have that now can we. Tell him exactly what he wants to hear."
"I'm not a skilled liar."
"That's news to me." he scoffed. "You've been quite excellent at it since our first meeting. Whether you admit it or not you are adept at keeping things to yourself."
"So you know me all of the sudden." she glared and he chuckled.
"You are not so incredibly hard to tear down and examine dear." he said as his hands became less stiff while he worked and that fluidity came back to him. He was becoming calmer the more he insulted her or picked at her, but this only proved to agitate her more.
"Well since you seem to be able to figure me out so incredibly well then maybe you can figure this out for me." April waited for his gaze to turn back to her after a pregnant pause and when he did she brought her right hand up and flipped him the bird before walking towards the lab door and out. She half expected him to ignore her or yell at her but instead she heard his laughter.
This rich baritone that filled the room. It shocked her so much she looked back at him to see he had returned to his work but with a amused look on his features. She wouldn't quite say a smile but it was better than the angry stoic face he always portrayed. Bringing herself out of her stare she marched down the hallway and towards their quarters. She had to smile a bit to herself at the ridiculousness of that exchange but she did seem to feel better. She was no longer worried but rather back to her devil-may-care attitude. She shouldn't care about the meeting with Marcus but be confident in herself. True she wasn't a skilled liar but her missions didn't exactly involve a lot of lying. It merely was the exchange of information that was her forte or acquiring information through forceful means. All of this was new to her, but with Khan and her's truce riding on the line she needed a flawless execution.
Khan needed to work and she needed this mission to be a success. There were no other options.
1647, Io Station, Admiral's Mess
April stood outside of the Admiral's temporary quarters trying her hardest to build up enough energy and motivation to step through the door. She had arrived five minutes ago and was still relatively early. She had gone over as may scenarios with the potential conversations that might take place but all the preparation in the world couldn't really prepare her for Alexander Marcus. He always seemed to have a stanch for interjecting comments that turned you around so quick you would get whiplash. April wasn't sure if it was a talent or an incredibly annoying curse he possessed but she always bore the brunt of it.
Finally ringing the bell the door opened for her and April saw that Marcus and the Colonel were already seated at a table. They were talking and what seemed to be a tumbler or drink in each of their hands. April saluted as they stood to greet her.
"Major, you're a little early." Colonel Roman said with a smile. "Alexander and I were just catching up."
"I apologize. I didn't wish to intrude on your personal time."
"Not at all, please sit Sommers." Marcus said as he gestured to the seat on the right of the Colonel and across the table from Marcus. April walked to it as the Colonel held the chair out for her and she settled down. Sitting straight she watched the two men settle. Marcus reached for another glass on the trey in the center as he then took the bottle of what appeared to be whisky. "Care for a drink?"
"I'm still technically on duty."
"One drink won't kill ya Major." the Colonel said in good nature. "Loosen up a bit, it's just a drink and dinner among colleagues. If it makes you feel any better you can call me Pierce."
"She won't." Marcus chuckled. "Major Sommers is a soldier through and through. She won't break rank even if you twisted her arm into doing it. Though I can always order her to drink and lighten up."
"Well by all means Alexander." Pierce said.
"Major." Marcus handed her the tumbler and she took it before bringing it to her lips and taking a small sip. It burned and was rather strong but as it slid down her throat it warmed her chest only a little. She wasn't much of a drinker but for some reason her tolerance to alcohol was always pretty high. On furlough at Lunar they would take a trip back to Earth and hit up the bars. It was there it was discovered that April could drink you under the table and clean out the contents of your wallet before midnight even came around the corner. However, she suspected she shouldn't do that with the Admiral and Colonel. If she did she was sure she would be demoted back down to a recruit.
"So Alexander has been telling me all about what he hopes to accomplish here on Io." the Colonel began. "What are your thoughts Major?"
"I have none." April said taking another sip of the alcohol. "I am merely here following orders."
"See Pierce, a soldier through and through."
"You must have some thoughts Major. It would be remiss to think you wouldn't."
"I assume you wish to think about my thoughts of the militarization of Starfleet. When it's a well known fact that Starfleet is an organization based on peaceful exploration and maintaining intergalactic relations with alien species. The Federation for some time has been more militarized, I see no fault in expanding the weaponry we use. We can still have peaceful exploration but that doesn't mean we need to go in with a smaller arsenal to prove we mean peace. There's an old saying you don't bring a knife to a gun fight." She settled her tumbler down on the table and the Colonel nodded.
"So you're the middle ground then."
"I suppose I am. Yes. After living so long in violence, you aim for peace as often as you can. As a species, we must learn to be better than savages but we mustn't forget to protect ourselves. Complacency only breeds ignorance. We cannot be ignorant to think we don't have enemies out there in the universe."
"Too true." Marcus said. "And those enemies have always been the Klingon Empire."
"One of them at least." April agreed. "Though the past few diplomatic missions with Enterprise has proved to sate the Empire from retaliation. Our first contact however with Captain Archer of the NX-01 wasn't ideal but to be fair the Klingon's are a warring nation. There's just no settlement with them. I suppose it's only a matter of time."
At that a young Sargent came into the quarters with a cart and food. Apparently the station chef had pulled out all the stops and soon plates, silverware, and a whole lot of food was settled before them. April looked at the spread with apprehension, it was a grandiose display and it almost disgusted her in a way. She was used to ration packs and the mess food. She wasn't used to finer things in life that came with rank. She wondered the last time either of these two men had been in a physical altercation or even a battle.
"Eat up Major." the Admiral said to her and she took up a serving of mashed potatoes and put them on her plate. Taking a few grilled asparagus and stuffed mushrooms she poked at the plate and ate rather slowly. The Admiral seemed to be enjoying his classic steak in medium rare and the Colonel enjoying a lobster. April rather didn't eat meat when given choice, as it was only good for building necessary muscle sometimes. She had always been graced however with a proper build so eating fruits and vegetables was more her pace.
Her stomach was also in knots so she wasn't sure she could stomach anything else.
April listened casually while the Colonel and Marcus talked, taking into her memory their war stories as well as details about the Colonel's family. Apparently he was a widower and had a son whom was also in Starfleet and served aboard the NCC-Columbia as their Chief Medical Officer. Marcus countered with the pride in his daughter who was a Science Officer with many credits in Engineering. April could see the adoration he had when he spoke about his daughter and how much she meant to him.
"What about you Major? Any family?" the Colonel asked as he looked her way. It brought April out of her thoughts for a moment as she looked up from her plate.
"Yes." she said airily. "My father is apart of Starfleet Security's Intelligence Division and my mother is a Communication Specialist with a degree in Xenolinguistics. Their jobs often crossed paths with one another so that's how they met."
"And had you."
"I was adopted, sir. Orphanage in London." April said and the Colonel raised his brows.
"I-I apologize Major."
"For what? It's not like you knew, nothing to get offended about. Though curious you didn't it is in my official documentation."
"Your file is very long Major. I must admit I didn't really read it thoroughly but skimmed it. What I did read was undoubtedly impressive. You have a bright career ahead of you."
"Careful Pierce, you don't want that to go to her head."
"She doesn't seem like the type. Besides it's true. You don't see many young kids these days with the career in mind."
And so the rest of dinner proceeded mindlessly and April was included occasionally. She was asked her opinion on other matters such as Starfleet Regulations, Training, Research and Development and the whole nine yards. It was a lot to focus on and she had to pick her words carefully as well as smartly. Before they knew it they were having coffee and soon the Colonel stood to leave. Both April and Marcus stood as well as they walked him to the door.
"It was lovely chatting with you Major. I look forward to seeing what you're going to do with your career. I'll be watching it closely." he said as he extended his hand towards her. April took it giving him a firm hand shake and he looked to Marcus. "See you bright and early Alex."
After the Colonel left it was just April and Marcus. The two returned to the table to retrieve their coffee and Marcus stood as he walked up to a few art pieces on the wall and gazed at them. He had his back turned to her but April knew he was probably pondering what he wanted to ask her in private now that the posturing with the Colonel was over.
"So, I hear things have been going well here."
"I'm glad to hear it."
"Escobar seems to think that you have a better understanding of direction than even I expected. I'm glad to hear it as well. However," Marcus turned and gave her a very hard glare. "You've been keeping things from me April."
April didn't quite understand what he was getting at but he sighed and set his coffee down on a nearby surface.
"It's come to my attention that you and Harrison have moved in with one another."
April grit her teeth as she too set her coffee down.
"Yes."
"And you thought it prudent not to tell me?"
"I wanted to make sure that the situation was something worthy of reporting. It only happened a few days ago. I didn't want to waste your time with it."
"You know any change in his routine is worthy of reporting. Especially my top agent is sleeping in the same vicinity as him."
"I merely took your suggestions to heart. Other avenues had been exhausted and Harrison is still a man after all. Albeit I was apprehensive but, it seemed to be the only choice." she hated the words that were coming out of her mouth at this very moment. She wasn't sleeping with Khan but it had been an agreement between he and her that if need be she would have to convince him of such. She was remiss to think that the word hadn't gotten back to him about her change in living arrangements. Escobar was in direct contact with him as well. The news probably came from him.
"Ah. So, you did have it in you after all."
"I'm an Agent. Yes, usually above such actions but I do what's necessary. You of all people sir, should know that."
He seemed to relax a little at her responses. He deemed them to be honest and open as she had no reason to lie. She was making him believe he had caught her in a moment of weakness having kept something from him and now confronting her about it.
"So, hes compliant then?"
"It's too soon to say. But, I believe so."
"Don't get too caught up in the moment. He's smarter than you give him credit. He might actually be under the impression he's using you."
"I do have that in mind." she said raising a brow her tone even and emotionless.
"Just be careful. He's more than an ordinary man April. Don't forget what he is and what he can do. That's why we are doing all of this. To make a better tomorrow from people like him."
He genuinely sounded concerned for her so she nodded.
"You may think I'm incapable of separating emotions and just pure physicality. Trust me when I say it's nothing but physical. If there are emotions on his side, I will use them to my benefit."
"Well glad you're on my side then." he chuckled a bit. "It's getting rather late, you should return to him before he becomes overly suspicious. You're dismissed Major."
"Aye sir."
April walked towards the door but Marcus called out to her one last time.
"April." he said and she stopped and looked over her shoulder at him. "If I ever hear again that you've kept something from me, you're going to wish that you hadn't."
"I understand, sir. It won't happen again."
With that she left quickly, all too eager to get away from that threat. She wasn't usually one to fear someone. She knew that if Marcus ever became truly displeased with her she was sure he wouldn't hesitate to erase her existence and the existence of those she loved.
