Orcus was beautiful.
It was hard to believe that two hundred Starfleet personnel had lost their lives here, or that there was something residing on the planets surface that was capable of killing.
Nyota stood next to Khan on the bridge, hand on his shoulder, as he sat in his Captain's chair on a new ship with a new crew. Each persons gaze was fixed on the view screen as footage of the planets surface was relayed to the ship from the observation craft that had been sent down. As the little remotely controlled craft descended into the planets atmosphere through the clouds, it revealed the lush landscapes of a forest planet, balanced with green fields and wild flowers, hills and cliffs, and several bodies of water. No one had been entirely sure of what to expect, but it certainly wasn't the magnificent paradise that was displayed before them. As they stared, awestruck, each person could silently agree that 'Orcus' seemed like completely the wrong name…
xxxx
"Darling…" Khan's soft, velvety tone roused Nyota from her sleep. She could feel his thumb caressing her cheek as she opened her eyes. "It's 6am, my love." He told her, crouched beside the bed, watching her lovingly.
He kissed her forehead as he stood up. Nyota smiled and stretched out, propping herself up on her elbows and watching Khan as he walked over to the apartments computer. He was already dressed and busing himself. It was Monday; expedition commencement day.
The past seven days had been busy with preparation; Khan had met a few times with General Wells and the Admiral for tactical planning, and with groups of appointed members of the away team to brief them, which, much to Nyota's pleasant surprise, included Kirk, Bones and Scotty from the Enterprise. Uhura had been re-training herself; putting the weight back on that she had lost in cryostasis, and working out for a few hours each day to build up her muscle mass. She was not one-hundred percent back to normal, but a weeks worth of discipline and determination had made vast improvements to her body and overall feeling of health.
"Did you get any sleep last night?" Nyota asked, rubbing her eyes and forcing herself out of the warm bed.
"I got enough." Khan replied, trying to hide a yawn from her.
Nyota smiled and shook her head as she walked over to the kitchen and poured two large mugs of coffee, taking one over to Khan.
"I don't believe you." She whispered to him, passing him the mug and planting a lingering kiss on his lips, Khan smiled.
Having showered, dressed, eaten as much food as she could and stolen some of Khan's, Nyota grabbed her PADD and a small bag of things, and made her way out of the apartment with him. They walked the short distance to the Intelligence Base Shipyard hand-in-hand. Nyota smiled to herself; for the first time ever, they didn't have to hide from anyone. It was freeing.
0800 hours and the shipyard was abuzz. Twenty shuttles littered the dockyard, and ground crew members worked around them like ants; fitting them out, making final adjustments, testing engines and ensuring they were ready to transport the two-hundred mission personnel up to the new ship at the Starship Base.
Curious personnel glanced at them as they walked through the yard together, but Nyota did not care, she was too excited by the activity and to go up into space again, explore a new world. Spotting the General, they approached him. Wells was conversing with some ground crew, but swiftly ordered them back to their duties.
"Khan, Lieutenant." He addressed them both, PADD in his hand. "Your crew are beginning to arrive and are checking in with Commander Spock, departure is in an hour, are you both set?"
"Absolutely, General." Khan replied. The General nodded.
"You're getting the newest ship in the Fleet - the USS Entrada. She's smaller than the Vengeance is, and not even quite as big as the standard Federation ships, but she has been designed for stealth, utility and accommodation." The General informed them, bringing up images and specifications on his PADD.
"Weaponry is above average standard, and her speed is well advanced of any of the Dreadnought classes."
The USS Entrada was an elegant looking ship, sleek and aerodynamic with a deep hull and large bridge, wrapped up in a compact yet agile-looking design. Wells fingers danced over the PADD screen as he sent the information on to Khan's device.
"Any further details you need will be there for your viewing, but the ships design will be nothing any of you are unfamiliar with." He concluded, tucking his device under his arm. "Good luck out there. May you discover everything there is to know about Orcus, and find whatever it is that was responsible for ending two-hundred lives." He extended a hand out to Khan. "Be safe; let us know of your departure from the Space Dock and I'll raise a glass for the Entrada's maiden voyage for you."
"Thank you, Sir." Khan smiled, shaking his hand.
"Lieutenant." Wells addressed Nyota and she saluted him.
The General left them to resume his work for their departure. Nyota turned to Khan and grinned, wrapping an arm around his waist and cuddling into him.
"I know it's going to be dangerous, but I can't help feeling excited!"
Khan returned her smile and embrace, "I know, me too." He released her, taking her hand again, "Come on, time to check in."
xxxx
The USS Entrada received much admiration from its new crew. Upon arrival to the ship, Khan gave his crew an hour for set up and preparation - the ship was already prepped and purring, so sixty-minutes would be more than enough time for the final checks to take place, and for everyone to sort their designated quarters and find their station.
On the bridge, the layout was the standard, only larger. The helm, subspace defence, science, communications and environmental stations all had room for an extra person. An eager looking Lieutenant sat in the chair next to Uhura's at communications, she rose from her seat as Nyota approached.
"I'm Lieutenant Keats." She said, "Your second in command."
Nyota smiled and greeted her, an extra pair of ears will always be useful to communications, in fact on a mission like this into unknown and hostile territory, as many pairs of everything will be useful. Taking a quick look around, Nyota spied two familiar faces; Spock as head of science - predictably - and Kirk, hovering over the first officer's command station.
Kirk spotted her and a grin spread across his face. He shot across the bridge, immediately hugging her whether she liked it or not.
"It's so good to see you!" He beamed and she couldn't help but return it.
The last time she saw Jim Kirk was before the Vengeance had landed back on earth, during Khan and Spock's last argument. They may not have parted on the best of terms, but she had no troubles with Kirk, after all, it was not him who filed the report, or even commented on her continuing relationship.
"How have you landed as first officer?" She asked, happy to see his ridiculous face again.
"How could I not?" He puffed up with his usual charming vanity. "Something to do with me actually being good at my job! Oh, and to stop the girls from fighting each other." He added, gesturing to Spock and the currently empty Captain's chair. Nyota laughed and rolled her eyes, unsure whether he was joking or not, but suspected an element of truth in it.
"Well, it's good to see you again too." She added, and Kirk return to his station.
Khan strode in from the turbo lift, statuesque and radiating confidence. Nyota loved to see him working in his element; organising, planning, commanding and ordering - he really was an unparalleled leader.
"Right then." He stood in front of his chair, briefly surveying the room. "Status, helmsmen?"
"Flight checks are complete and we are ready for take off, Captain." A pilot replied.
Uhura sent out the various departure transmissions to the Space dock and Starfleet, and a personal transmission to General Wells.
"Departure transmissions have been sent, Sir, including communication to General Wells." She informed Khan.
"Thank you, Lieutenant." He said, taking his seat and activating a button on his arm rest.
"USS Entrada crew, prepare for take off."
xxxx
It took six minutes to get to the Laurentian system, and a further two to locate Orcus and settle the ship in a close and safe position above the planet. To prevent the same devastating occurrence twice, the USS Entrada had been supplied with a few observation crafts - small vessels mounted with several cameras that could be piloted remotely from the safety of the ship, and relay and record footage back to the bridge.
The land was breath taking. No one knew what to think as they viewed the footage and images coming up on the view screen, but it was difficult to imagine any form of hostility living here that could have taken all those lives.
Nyota swallowed thickly and squeezed Khan's shoulder. The majesty of this world made the thought suddenly more terrifying.