AN: I am so so sorry for how long it's been since I updated this. I could make lots of excuses (learning to drive so not having time to write in the bus, having a kid, changing job etc) but I'd be lying if I didn't admit the main reason is every writers biggest enemy - writers block. Really struggled with this chapter, to make it fresh and interesting and not just a repeat of everything I'be already said. Hopefully I succeed.

Anyway, I'm going to try and keep the momentum I've rebuilt going, but it may be slow, and I can't make any promises that I will finish what I intended, but I will at least try to give you some kind of satisfying conclusion.

If you are still out there readers, please drop me a review to let me know.

Chapter 11 - The Defence Rests

Kati had stood on the front lines of battle, had watched her enemy marching towards her, and had not been afraid. She had looked death in the eye more than once, and had not flinched. She had taken part in infiltration missions where death would be the most merciful punishment for her capture, with perfect composure. She had been caught, and punished, and escaped battered and bleeding, with her poise perfectly intact. She had dove headfirst into the unknown with nothing but surety.

And yet, leaving her hotel room the morning after she let James Kirk go, filled her with unease. She was wary of every security officer she passed, from those who manned the hotel lobby, the public transport officers, to those on duty at the courthouse; any moment she expected to be accosted and arrested for what she was. Was it only her own fate in her hands, she would not care, none of them could take her if she did not allow it. But as the last of their kind, her people's lives hung in the balance, dependant on her good standing in this world and her freedom to try and help them. The weight that had been slowly crushing her since Khan's failure was getting unbearable, and she wondered how he had always been able to carry it so confidently.

Her relief, when she made it to the courtroom without incident, was only slight. Kirk had not betrayed her, that was something, but the piper still needed to be paid. She knew what he wanted, though he would not demand it, and knew what she would do. But first, she had a defence to give.

"Ladies and Gentlemen of the court," She began, when called. "Ten days ago, Thomas Harewood was tried posthumously for his part in the unfortunate chain of events that brings us here today. While he had written a confession for the crime of destroying the London Archive and killing those inside, he was found innocent due to coercion. It has already been well established that Khan too, for the majority of his actions taken, was under coercion from Admiral Marcus. To what extent, we do not know, as we cannot ask Marcus, and have been denied the opportunity to ask Khan himself. But what we do know, is more than enough to cast reasonable doubt on the rest. Given the precedent it is only just that Khan be found not guilty. It is also important that he is, due to the precedent we set here today, in the treatment of his kind. You may not be aware of this, but the 72 other men and women from his era in the pods he fought so hard to protect, have not yet been given their freedom. They may not, depending on the outcome of this trial. We are here to try one man alone, and I would not ask you to forgot that. All I ask is that you remember that this is a landmark case, with consequences that will echo through history. It is more important than ever that we reach the correct conclusion, and that conclusion is that Khan Noonien Singh is innocent."

She carefully watched the jury as she spoke, measuring their reactions. Most were shocked by the revelation of what was happening to the other 72. Of those, some seemed outraged not to have been informed previously, while others seemed anxious at the extra weight of responsibility now on them. Still others were either less bothered by it, or better at hiding their reactions. It was clear these were divisible into two categories; those whose minds were already made up, and were barely listening to any evidence or arguments given, and those who were listening intently, gathering all the information and trying to make their decision based on the facts, not emotion. The latter she was sure she could win over, the former she could do nothing about. For now, the balance seemed to lay in her favour, as long as she could hold it.

"Thank you for your statement, do you have any evidence to present?" The judge asked, prompting the beginning of the next round.

"I do, your honour." She walked back to her desk and picked up her PADD, opening a file and flicking into onto the view screens. Copies would simultaneously download to the jury's PADD's.

"I present to the court the findings of the best of King's College physics department, when I asked them to map potential trajectories for the USS Vengeance's fall, and the potential death-tolls thereof. As you can see, left unguided the ships fall would still have resulted in a great amount of death and destruction. And if that had been Khan's goal, destruction for the sake of destruction, note that there are several targets to which he could have turned the ship which would have had far more devastating effects. Now, I do not claim that he was necessarily trying to minimise casualties either, as again, you may notice highlighted areas where the loss of life would have been greatly reduced. It is clear that he targeted Starfleet, whether for revenge or because in his experience he viewed them as a danger to the greater good. But what I do hope the jury takes away from this, is that blame for the destruction caused by the crash cannot be laid solely at Khan's feet. It must be shared with those who so recklessly crippled a ships flight systems while in orbit of a populated planet, precipitating a crash that would inevitably lead to the injury and death of any number of bystanders."

Her eyes strayed from the jury, to the spectators gallery, searching out the one she knew would be there. Sure enough, Kirk flinched at her words. The truth was too important to spare him the shame, but she was not entirely heartless.

"Have they been charged? No. We grant them mercy because we understand that they had limited options and were making what they believed to be the best choice they had. And if we can be so lenient with them, does justice not demand we do the same for Khan?"

She paused to signify the end of that line of defence, giving the jury a moment to consider. Murmurs of protest and agreement could be heard from either side, until the judge called them to attention.

"Does the defence have any other evidence to present?"

"Yes, your honour. A character witness, if I may. The Defence calls Marla McGivers of Kings College to the stand."

A side door opened, a Starfleet Officer holding it aside as Marla swept through. Kati was pleased to see the confidence in her friends step, though knew at least part of it was an act. She gave her a small smile to reassure her, and received one in her return as Marla seated herself behind the stand.

"Miss McGivers, you are a history Post-Grad Student, focusing your studies on the Eugenics wars and the history of the Augments, one of whom stands on trial here today, are you not?" Kati introduced her friend to the court.

"That is correct." Marla answered, fidgeting and trying to lean towards the built-in microphone to be sure she was heard.

"And you recently published an already highly-regarded, and controversial paper, which changed our understanding on the Augments part in history?" Kati added with an encouraging smile, a little earlier than planned. She could tell by her friends audible heart rate and excess perspiration that she was nervous, and could do with the reassurance that she was the expert here.

"I did." Marla nodded.

"We'll come back to that paper a little later, but for now, for those of us who didn't pay so much attention to high school history, could you just give us a brief run down on who the augments are, the kind of background Khan came from?"

Marla nodded and took a deep breath, some of the tension releasing from her shoulders as she started in on her specialist subject. "The Augments were the creation of Dr Stavos Keniclius and Dr Berut Soong in the late 20th Century of Earth as part of project Khan, an attempt to create super-soldiers. They were the products of genetic modification, breed from test tubes in a secret government lab, and submitted to ongoing experimentation and rigorous battle training. This training often involved fights to the death."

"So a pretty brutal place to grow up." The understatement of the century, but enough to get the point across to the jury. "What do we know of Khan himself during this time?"

"According to Dr Soongs notes, he was initially known at Subject 124. He earned the name Khan because he was the model subject, the strongest and smartest of them all. He took it upon himself to unite the augments - not an easy task with their highly competitive and violent natures - and even ended the death matches, stepping in to save and train the weaker subjects instead of letting them die."

Kati nodded solemnly. What Marla didn't know, (or rather what they had never discussed) was that Kati was the first that Khan had stepped in to save. It felt like a lifetime ago, and yet her memory of it was crystal clear.

Piotr had been a brute, all size and strength and little focus on skill. He had had several arena kills to his name, while it had been Kati's first time in the ring. No one had expected her to survive it. She had pulled out every trick she knew, every feint, dodge, application of his own strength against him. The match that was expected to last minutes dragged out as she did everything she could to keep moving, keep fighting, keep surviving. She even landed a few good punches here and there. And then she had made a mistake, and she knew it was over. She remembered being slammed into the ground, pinned in an unbreakable hold and pummelled, bones breaking and blood filling her mouth and vision. She could still hear the excited howls of her brothers and sisters, calling for her death while she could do nothing but endure the pain and wait for it all to end. Then it had ended, but not in the way anyone was expecting.

"ENOUGH."

Khan had never issued an order to his fellow augments before, but he was feared and respected enough for that not to matter. Kati couldn't see much beyond Piotr's large frame looming over her, but she hadn't needed too. The silence spoke volumes. Bloody fist still raised, frozen in place, Piotr's eyes had flicked from the direction of Khans voice to where their handlers sat, afraid to disobey either. When the scientists remained silent, allowing the situation to play out, his eyes returned to Khan and widened. Seconds later Khan had entered her field of vision, yanking Piotr up and shoving him away hard. They stared one another down for long seconds, but Piotr knew he was no match for Khan at the best of times, yet alone with the injuries she had manage to inflict on him.

Kati had wondered if she really wanted to be in the middle of this, uncertain if Khan was here to save her, or end her suffering more efficiently. Either way, she was far too broken to do anything but whimper when he scooped her up, and carried her away from the arena without a word of explanation to anyone. That would come later. At the time, his attention was solely on her as he took her to the first aid room, usually reserved to patch up the victors. No one had tried to stop him, as he helped himself to the supplies and cleaned and bandaged her wounds.

"Do you know where you went wrong?" He had asked as he helped her take a sip of water to rinse and spit the blood away.

"Underestimated him. Didn't think he was… clever enough to copy my moves." She had muttered weakly, as she ignored the sharp pains every breath caused her broken ribs.

"That's right. Being underestimated is a powerful tool if you know how to use it. But I don't need to tell you that, do I? Clearly you were using it to your advantage at the start of the fight. Your technique and tactical thinking are rather impressive, I do believe you would have won that fight had you not blundered when you did." His praises had made her glow, while his disapproval made her heart sink. It was why he was such a successful leader, why he was able to bring their people together; he knew exactly what buttons to push to make people want to please him, and to make his enemies fear him. "But still, it would be so wasteful to allow that talent to be snuffed out over one wrong move. I will talk to Dr Soong. If we are to attain our best it is time for these death matches to end. After all, it's what doesn't kill you that makes you stronger."

And stronger they had become, and for what? From being the weakest in the arena, to their only hope, it was Kati's mind that had got her where she was now. And where she was now was the middle her defence, no time for getting lost in memories.

"So, raised in an environment where killing is not only acceptable, but encouraged, and yet he developed enough of a conscience on his own to want to stop it. Interesting. But let's fast forward a bit, can you give us a brief overview of how the Augments rose to power?"

"Yes. Khan and the other augments were deployed during the 3rd World War, and succeeded in bringing it to a swift end, by overthrowing their creators and the governments they were supposed to be working for, as well as the invading armies, and their governments, effectively taking control of the globe. Country borders were erased as Khan set 8 of his generals to control portions of the globe, all answering back to him." Marla explained.

"And what did they do when they took over, how did they treat the humans they had subjugated?"

"Accounts are mixed. They reconfigured the way a lot of the social structures at the time; back then the world was based on a capitalist system, which they brought down in favour of a more communist model, meaning that all supply lines ran through them. There is evidence that some of them abused this power, treating the people as slaves and hoarding the food they produced for themselves, giving very little back. But this appears to have been limited to a few of Khan's generals, whom he personally deposed, which suggests he cared that people were treated well. This is supported by the most recently discovered evidence, that Khan and his people used voluntary donations of their blood to help the sick."

"Evidence I would like to present now your honour." Kati interjected, looking over to the judge for her nod before continuing. "If the jury would take a look at their PADDs, that information should be coming up now for your perusal. Thank you for that historical context Ms McGivers, and finally could you just tell us, in your professional opinion, based on everything you know about Khan Noonien Soong, how do you understand his recent actions, and do you believe he is a danger to society moving forwards?"

"I believe he is a victim of Admiral Marcus's plans, and fought back because that's how he was raised and trained. But if offered a chance to live in peace, I do not believe he - or any of the other augments - is threat to society." Marla delivered her final line with a smile, glad to have done her part, and glad it was over. Except, it wasn't over yet.

"Miss Heather, the witness is yours." The judge announced, as Kati returned to her seat.

Heather looked almost smug, for a Vulcan, and she crossed Kati's path on the way to the stand."Miss McGivers, history is subjective, is it not?" She opened, not pulling any punches. The question was mostly rhetorical, directed at the jury rather than Marla. But it was still a question, and a predictable one at that, so Kati had prepared Marla to answer it.

"History is history, what happened happened."

"That much is true, but the subject of history, our understanding of it, that is subject to change is it not? This paper of yours, it changed the previous opinion that the augments were nothing but bloodthirsty tyrants, and tomorrow some new evidence could be unearthed that could change it back. Isn't that how it works?" Heathers head tilted, raising one characteristically Vulcan eyebrow. So very predictable.

"Change is a strong word, it would be more accurate to say more evidence clarifies our ideas. If you'd read my paper you would see that the new evidence recently uncovered was really just the tip of the iceberg of what we already knew." Marla came back. There was even a hint of a smile on her face, actually enjoying putting the arrogant Vulcan back in her place.

"So let's talk about what we already knew." Heather smiled back, as she went back over to her desk and pulled out an actual book. The book, the one Marla had shown her about the augments past and most importantly, their trial. How she managed to find a copy on such short notice when books were practically a thing of the past, Kati had no idea, but it filled her with dread. For good reason. "Do you recognise this book Ms McGivers?"

"Yes, that's Dr Arik Soong's 'Analysis of the Augment Failure.'" Marla answered.

"Objection, that was not presented in discovery!" Kati protested, but she knew where this was going, and how little use it would be.

"I'm not submitting it as evidence, I merely intend to read a couple of passages for our historian to verify." Heather explained to the judge.

"I'll allow it, objection overruled."

"Thank you, your honour. Ms McGivers, can you tell the court who Dr Arik Soong was, in relation to the augments?" She continued.

"He was an ancestor of Berut Soong, their creator." Marla could say more on the subject, Kati was sure of it, but was keeping her answers brief. Good girl.

"And a respected scientist himself." Heather filled in the blank. "And did he not say, that due to a defective genome the Auments were 'highly prone to aggression and violent behavior'?"

"He theorised as much, though he had no direct contact with them, only the notes his grandfather left to which I earlier referred."

"From which you both drew very different conclusions. As I said, subjective." Heather 1 - 0 Marla. And she wasn't stopping there. She made a show of flicking though pages in the book as she said, "let's move along, shall we. What better evidence could there be for this trial, than the sworn statements recorded from Khan's prior trial in his own time. Have you heard this one, Ms McGivers, 'The tyrant' referring to Khan 'took everything from me, promising me he would ensure we were cared for, and instead made my children and I work for the scraps of what was once ours.'?"

"Yes, but-"

"And this one, 'My brother only wanted to feed his starving children, but They caught him stealing and chopped off his hands. Now he can't even feed himself.'?"

"Well yes, but-,"

"How about 'They burnt our fields for their war, and their leader' meaning Khan 'raped my wife and-',"

"Objection! Prosecution is argumentative, she's badgering my witness and not allowing her to answer the questions!" Kati interjected, jumping to her feet, a hairsbreadth from losing her composure entirely. Not only was Heather echoing the same lies from their original trial, but the manner, cutting Marla off before she could make any defence. This was what Kati was supposed to be preventing from happening again. She felt like she was bursting with the need to correct those lies, as she had the first time around, the arguments springing back to her mind. The first had been a billionaire who had built his living on the backs of minimum wage workers, whose business they had taken over and redistributed to be fairer to everyone, including him, even if he didn't see it that way. The second a common criminal, whose needs were provided for, but still stole out of greed. He got what he deserved, and didn't even have kids. The last had been fairly compensated for the damage his fields suffered in the course of the war, and was outright lying about his wife. But she couldn't voice those facts, and neither could Marla, not without raising red flags about where they got such inside knowledge. The best should could do was give Marla a chance to say something. Anything.

"Sustained. Ms Heather, please allow the witness to answer the questions, save the sermonising for your closing statement." The judge agreed.

"Apologies your honour." Heather bowed her head just slightly, before refocusing on Marla. "So Ms McGivers, you were confirming whether you are familiar with those statements, as historical record from the Augments infamous trial following the eugenics war?"

"I am familiar with those statements at part of the trial, however their historical value is questionable." Marla answered carefully. "The trial didn't meet the standards for a fair trial, even for the time period, yet alone today. Since there was no defence at all, no cross examinations or counter-arguments, there's no way of knowing whether the statements are true or false. And given the strong political motive to remove the augments from power, we can't rule out false witnesses."

"And is that a common thing, historically, for people to give false testimony at trials?" Heather asked, and Kati felt a cold dread grip her spine. It was a trap, and Marla was about to walk straight into it. Desperately she tried to get Marla's attention without drawing too much to herself, but her subtle head shake and hand gesture went unnoticed, as Marla opened her mouth to speak.

"Very common, there are plenty of cases through history; Steven Avery, Socrates, Elizabeth Bathory…"

"For what reasons do they do this?"

"Usually political reasons, but some personal. They may be paid too by someone who wants the case to go either way, or may have connections to the defendant, or some other connection to the case."

Kati closed her eyes, as though not seeing it could stop what she could see playing out in her head. But there was no stopping it now, Heather had Marla right where she wanted her, and was about the swing the axe.

"I see. One final question for you, Ms McGivers, who is your current college roommate?"

Kati opened her eyes again, just in time to see the penny drop for her friend. Marla's eyes went wide like a deer in the headlights, and her mouth gaped and wavered.

"I… I don't see what that has to do with Khan?" She tried, her eyes flicking backwards and forwards between Heather and Kati. Kati knew what she was really asking, she wanted her to object relevance, but it would do no good. It would only give Heather a chance to spell it out for the jury; 'The question speaks to the witnesses reliability.' She would say, and the judge would overrule the objection. She gave her friend a sad head shake, there was nothing she could do now.

"Answer the question, please." Heather's usually emotionless voice had an edge to it, something on the unforgiving side of smugness. For the first time Kati could see that for all the civility of their race, the Vulcans we fierce in their own way.

"Kathryn Lucas." Marla mumbled defeatedly.

"The same Kathryn Lucas who selected you as witness for her defence," Heather clarified for the jury. "No more questions, your honour."

"I'm sorry." Marla mouthed to Kati, as she was lead down from the stand and back to her seat, as though there had been anything she could have done. But Kati knew it was not her fault, even if she had seen it coming, the most basic answers she could have given to the questions would still have lead to the inevitable outcome Heather had so carefully crafted.

It was Kati who should be apologising. She should have known better than to put anyone on the stand she had a personal connection with. Not that she had much choice, had there been another Augment expert on the planet who believed in their innocence she would obviously have chosen them. Originally she had thought it serendipitous to be sharing a flat with someone so ready to accept her people, but she should have known better. And not only had her error in judgement cost them heavily in making her case, but no doubt it would set Marla back in her chosen career as well. The whole world was watching this case, and she'd just been labelled an unreliable witness, a biased individual in a field that should be devoid of bias. Of course Kati herself could set that matter straight, if she could safely reveal her origins. The stakes just kept getting higher, and the chances of success, smaller.

"Does the defence have any other evidence to present?" The judge asked, pulling Kati's focus back. She glanced behind her at the gallery, desperately hoping to see anyone else to whom she had sent communications asking them to speak up as a witness for Khan, but of course, there was none. They had been long shots anyway. With a heavy heart she turned back to the judge.

"The defence rests, your honour."

"Very well, we'll move on to closing statements. Prosecution, the floor is yours."

Kati watched Heather take her place in the centre of the courtroom to address the jury, her PADD clutched in front of her, no doubt containing her prepared speech. She would give it word for word, with no deviation.

"Esteemed members of the jury, and honourable Judge Witcombe. By now you have seen and heard all you need to make your judgement on the guilt of Khan Noonien Singh. You have heard firsthand from Captain Kirk of the enterprise, of how he witnessed Khan open fire on a room full of Starfleet officers, killing Captain Pike. How he murdered Admiral Marcus right in front of him. There is no room for doubt that he committed these crimes. The defence would have to believe that these are the acts of a desperate man, even a hero, trying to save his kin, and perhaps he was. But he went about it the wrong way, he was offered a chance to bring the Admiral to justice correctly, but elected for murder instead, and should in the least pay the penalty for such a decision. That is the minimum you should find him guilty of. The rest is his word versus a dead man's, we may never know the truth of how many of his actions was Marcus' influence, and how much was his own violent nature. What we do know is that he is dangerous. Therefore, perhaps caution, rather than mercy, is called for in deciding the fate of such an individual. Perhaps we should do as Khan himself suggested, in the moments before he murdered Marcus, and just let him sleep."

Kati's lips pursed. Heather may have been reading from a script, but she was good enough to know when writing it what Kati's defence would be, and her reasoning was so logical, Kati was even starting to question herself. Khan had chosen to kill Marcus rather than allow Kirk to bring him to justice. Of course Kati could understand why he did it, but that didn't make it the right decision. If it had been about him alone, she knew even he would just accept whatever punishment awaited him for it, but they had to think about the others. Reviewing the trial in her head, Kati knew it was looking bad but not hopeless. There were some charges she knew she would not be able to shake, but a reduced sentence and a shot at rehabilitation - for him and his people - were certainly within reach, if she played her cards right. She should play it safe, stick to the plan, no room for outrageous revelations.

"Ms Lucas, your closing statement please."

With a nod Kati rose swiftly, glided the centre of the floor, and came to stand before the jury.

"Esteemed members of the court, and of the federation." She began. "You are here today to pass judgement on Khan Noonien Singh. But it order for justice to truly be done, you must consider not only his failings, but those committed against him. His actions were the direct result of a failure in following first contact protocols." A ripple went through the courtroom at her words, particularly through the higher-ranking Starfleet officials. Kati couldn't help a small smirk as she continued. "Some of you may be surprised to hear the first contact protocols invoked here, as Khan is originally of earth. But as our historian has described, he comes from a radically different time and culture to us, as alien as any we have encountered in the universe. First contact protocols stress the importance of consent in all interactions with a new culture, which by Khan's account given by Captain Kirk, was violated when Admiral Marcus manipulated him into working for him, using his still-frozen people as hostages.

"Furthermore, the Prime Directive, states, "the right of each sentient being to live in accordance with its normal cultural evolution is considered sacred." The prosecution says that Khan refused an offer to bring Marcus to justice 'correctly', but I counter that he did so by his own cultural standards, and that is something that we must respect. Khan is a victim, guilty only of fighting for the freedom of himself and his people from an organisation that failed to treat them with the same considerations we offer every other being in the galaxy. We need to break that cycle now, it is not too late to make a better impression on the other members of his race and bring them into the fold as part of the federation. And as a prince of his people, how we sentence Khan today will have a large bearing on how that goes. Show him mercy, and they may too show us mercy. Condemn him, and we may be condemned by the same measure."

This was it, Kati had said all she needed to say, given the best defence she could. If the looks on the jury members faces were anything to go by, she may have even won. She could sit down now, and let things play out as they would, except she could feel Kirk's expectant eyes watching her, still waiting for her to follow his 'suggestion'. She knew she could call his bluff, she knew he was invested in her people now and would still help. But then she flicked her eyes over to look at him directly, felt those earnest blue eyes pierce into her soul, and knew she couldn't do any of those things. She had to see this through.

"Good people of the jury, I implore you to give Khan a chance to redeem himself, a chance for him and his people to experience the peace the federation has fostered throughout the galaxy. I ask this not just as his lawyer, but as a representative of his people. My name is Kati, I am a 21st century augment, awoken secretly by Khan to get justice for our kind. Will you grant it?"