Chapter 11

"Khan will be placed in the care of someone who will help to make him more suitable to live in our society." The judge says softly.

"And just who is this mysterious 'person'?" Khan growls.

He can already feel the invisible needles burrowing into his skin and the phantom blows landing on his already battered flesh. The judge was going to turn him over to some lunatic who was going to love tormenting Khan for his sins. It wasn't going to be 'rehabilitation,' it was going to be torture—never ending agony.

"A young woman who has fought pretty hard for the Augment cause." The judge says with a wry smile and when he speaks it's as if Khan were the only one in the room. "If not for her or captain Kirk's efforts, I never would have even considered rehabilitation as an option…but they both raised some pretty keen points. She's cleaning up her community and saving lives; I figured it'd be good to put you with your polar opposite. Who knows? Maybe you'll even learn something."

Khan is seething on the inside. Him learn from a child? This judge really was insane. Or suicidal. If it was a death wish the old bird wanted, Khan would be more than happy to crush his skull in for him,

"And her name?" Khan says carefully, keeping his irritation locked up inside him.

"Ze'eva Harrison." The old man says lightly before slapping a hand down onto Khan's shoulder. He flinches slight before cocking his head to side as he thinks about the name.

He's heard that name somewhere before.

Ze'eva… Where has he…oh.

No.

This cannot be happening.

They say nothing during the time it takes them to get from Earth to Ze'eva's planet. A thin, silver collar rests securely around Khan's neck and he tugs at it lightly in irritation. A shock collar. He is superior to the human race in every way imaginable and they decide to punish him like a common dog. To add insult to the injury, a mere child is to be his warden.

Oh fate, thou truly art fickle, Khan thinks.

"Hello!" Kirk yells as he raps impatiently on the door. "Anyone here—?" His words are cut off as a small explosion sounds and a cloud of smoke seeps under the doorway. "Get back!" Kirk yells before unceremoniously diving into the bushes. Spock and Khan take a single step back, share a look, and then turn their gazes back to the doorway as running footsteps can be heard inside. The door swooshes open and a woman with short black hair and watering brown eyes gasps in the doorway.

"What are you doing blowing stuff up, Ze'eva?! You know people are coming by! What? Are you trying to get out of this thing by suicide?! There are better ways! Just say 'no'!"

"Hi…" Kirk says awkwardly and the girl whips around, her mouth making a large O of surprise. "I'm captain James Tiberius Kirk and you are…?"

"I'm …uh…well…"

"Just tell him that you're awesome!" A girl coughs from inside. "It usually gets a good enough laugh." Another girl walks up beside the other. She smiles slightly and nods to the men. She has pale white skin, long dark hair that's not quite brown and not quite black, and large blue-green eyes and is covered from head to toe in black ashes."'Sup?" She addresses the group, tilting her head ever so slightly to the side.

Khan narrows his eyes. "Ze'eva." He says softly.

"That's me. And you are…?" She looks at him carefully but shows no visible signs of recognition. Something inside Khan relaxes ever so slightly. If Star Fleet believes they are meeting for the first time, then they will allow him to stay. The girl may be strange, but she, at least, will treat him relatively well.

If not…he can heal quickly enough.

Besides, she's barely over twenty two, he doubted any injuries she could inflict on his person would cause any significant damage.

"I'd invite you in but..." She looks back at the billowing smoke and shrugs. "Yeah…want to sit on the porch while we wait for the house to air out?" She doesn't wait for a response as she darts inside and begins to flip on the fans before walking back out and sitting casually against the steps.

"So…how's life?" Ze'eva asks and her friend elbows her in the ribcage as red creeps up her face from being associated with the bizarre girl. Had Ze'eva not been nominated to be his new tormentor, he would have found the situation amusing…but all he can think is, why? Why her? She doesn't appear to be dangerous and there is no aura of cruelty surrounding her.

She actually seems…nice.

Kind.

Caring.

A storm of pain rages behind her pale blue-green eyes but otherwise, she seems perfectly happy as though this were a mere social visit and not a prisoner exchange.

"Well, good luck." Kirk pats the girl lightly on the shoulder and she nods to him. Spock and she exchange a quick Vulcan solute and they leave. "And if you need anything." Kirk presses a piece of paper into her hand. "Just a give me a call." He looks at Khan and shakes his head a little before looking back at her. "Seriously. Don't hesitate." The pair walk away, enter their ship, and leave.

"So, long time no see, huh?" Ze'eva asks him as she walks inside. Her friend stares after her incredulously.

"Wait a minute—you know this guy?!"

"Okay." She stops outside a door. "This is your room." She says.

Khan walks inside and looks around: a king-sized bed, a few thick blue quilts folded at the right hand corner of his bed, a large window overlooking a blossoming flower garden, a large blue rug covering the cold hard wooden floors, a small and empty dresser, an empty closet, and an adjoining bathroom complete with a toilet, sink, trashcan, mirror, and tub/shower. It isn't much but compared to his cell, it is paradise. He nods at her politely and she nods back at him.

She leans casually against the doorway and inspects her nails for a moment before turning to look at him as though she had forgotten that he had been in there. "Alright, you've got five minutes and then you get the grand tour of the bottom floor."

"And the top floor?" Khan inquires.

"Off limits." A threat lies barely concealed beneath her words.

Well, at least the first rule has presented itself: no going upstairs.

That seemed easy enough.

Khan smiles mockingly: "What? You think I'm going to attack you in the dead of the night?" He tugs lightly at the collar around his neck, but she just shakes her head, her eyes still hard and irritated.

"No, I'm having you nowhere near the children—especially the girls and especially at night." She walks away and Khan stares after her retreating form, confusion blooming in his chest.

Children?

Why are children living in this house if a mass murderer has been sentenced to stay here for God knows how long? And what is this woman—a saint? Is she 'saving her community' and also taking in little lost orphans from the streets? What's next? She's curing cancer and single handedly obliterating Global Warming?

Khan's stomach heaves slightly. Oh the humanity! It burns!